Class 




Book J^lL 

Copyright ]^^ 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



IS THE BIBLE THE WOED OF GOD? 

YES! 



IS THE BIBLE THE 
WORD OF GOD? 

YES! 



BY 

REV. THOMAS DUNCAN, D.D. 



New York and Washington 

THE NEALE PUBLISHING COMPANY 

1907 



tx^^ 



^f 



p 



-fl? 



JLmRARY of CONGRESS 
Two Cooies Received 

FEB 15 t90f 

.» A^Copyrijfht Entry 

F'Jtr . As-yftf 

CLASS >1 XX^„Nl. 



Copyright, 1907, by 
THE NEALE PUBLISHING COMPANY 



To the Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tion, whose members come from all the 
Protestant Churches, and are engaged in 
the great work of saving young men from 
the temptations which surround them, both 
in city and in country; to the St. Andrew's 
Society of the Protestant Episcopal 
Church, the aim of which is to lead wan- 
derers from Grod out of the allurements of 
the world into the Church of the Living 
God; and to all similar societies of other 
Protestant Churches, with similar objects 
in view, for whose work God be thanked, 
this volume is affectionately dedicated by 
the author. 



CONTENTS 



ESSAYS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

I — Is THE Bible a Gift from God to Man? 13 

II— The Holy Catholic Church and What is 

Implied in the Name 54 

III — Cathedrals and the Cathedral System 

• in the Light of Church History 90 

IV— The Historic EIpiscopate in Its Relation 

TO Church Unity 125 

V — What is the True Idea op the Christian 

Sacraments? 153 

VI— Priest or Presbyter 177 



SERMONS 

VII — The Evidential Value op Dreams 194 

VIII— The Christian's Inheritance 309 



ADDEESS TO THE BEADEES 

We venture to send out the following es- 
says, articles, and sermons because we 
think they will supply some of the religious 
wants of the religious people of our day. 
If it be said that each of the subjects dis- 
cussed has been explained and discussed 
before, we make reply, that the same may 
be said of every religious subject. And yet 
much remains to be explained, and there 
are calls for sermons and lectures and 
books on the most discussed subjects from 
many directions. 

The reasons are not far to see. The 
world of thought and knowledge is devel- 
oping every day, new fields are opening, 
and information respecting their bounds 
and limits and products are needed by the 
public, and are asked for by it. 

When travellers and tourists are asked 
for information about the countries which 
they have visited and explored it will not 
satisfy the enquirers to put into their hands 
the guide books and histories of the last 
century, or to refer the student of Grecian 

9 



10 ADDRESS TO THE EEADERS 

and Roman Mstory to Tacitus, and Caesar's 
Commentaries, or any works of preceding 
centuries. 

It is to be noticed also that religious 
work and religious thought are constantly 
being carried in dangerous directions, and 
words of warning are needed to guard the 
working public, lest they be misled. These 
and other considerations, which time for- 
bids us to mention, are the explanation of 
the appearance of the present little volume. 

We think the essay on the Inspiration of 
the Bible presents some thoughts and argu- 
ments to prove inspiration, which have not 
been presented before, and which at least 
deserve the consideration of ^^The higher 
critics, '^ and which we hope will be met by 
them if erroneous. 

As the advocates of * ' Cathedrals and the 
Cathedral System,'' are showing their 
faith by their works, and are busy buying 
land, and employing architects to make de- 
signs for their *^ sermons in stone"; we 
hope they will pause long enough to read 
the essay on ** Cathedrals and the Cathe- 
dral System, ' ' which we humbly trust will 
turn the pause into a period longer than 
life. 

We have thought that the other essays 
on doctrinal subjects will help to clear 
away some of the doctrinal mists and 



ADDRESS TO THE READERS 11 

clouds which for centuries have hung 
around these subjects. 

We do not think that in thus speaking 
we open ourselves to the charge of thinking 
too highly of our own work ; for we remem- 
ber that every little helps, and we have 
been encouraged by what we have some- 
where read, that when a regiment of sol- 
diers failed to draw up a great statue on to 
its pedestal, the added help of a little child 
was all that was needed to elevate it to its 
place. 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD TO 

MAN? 

The Eev. Dr. Williams, Bisliop of Michi- 
gan, has excited the surprise and sorrow 
of many of his fellow-churchmen by his late 
utterance before the Young Men's Chris- 
tian Association of Detroit. In attacking 
the doctrine of the inspiration of the Bible, 
in his address before that association, he 
has placed himself on another doctrinal 
platform, than that of his church. The 
Bishops all make a solemn vow before the 
whole world, when they are ordained to the 
priesthood, ^*to minister the doctrines and 
Sacraments and the discipline of Christ as 
this church has received the same''; the 
doctrine being set forth in the thirty-nine 
articles of the Protestant Episcopal 
Church. The 6th article plainly asserts the 
divine authority of the ivhole Bible. And 
as often as Bishops join in the service of 
ordination they place themselves on this 
platform. 

But Bishop Williams, as reported by the 
Detroit press, tells us '*that the Bible is not 

13 



14 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 

the word of God; and that all who take that 
position make a wicked use of the book." 
He further asserts, *^that it nowhere de- 
clares itself to he the word of God.'^ Can 
it be possible that Bishop Williams has 
overlooked the declaration of St. Paul that 
'^all Scripture'' — that is, the Old Testa- 
ment — ^4s given by inspiration of God, and 
is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for 
correction, for instruction in righteousness ; 
that the man of God may be perfect, thor- 
oughly furnished unto all good works" (2 
Tim. iii, 16); and also St. Peter's words: 
*^Holy men of God spoke as they were 
moved by the Holy Ghost" (2 Pet i, 21) % 
And has he not read the words of Christ 
himself when he says: '* Search the Scrip- 
tures, for in them ye think ye have eternal 
life, and they are they which testify of 
me" (John v, 39), which indicate their in- 
spiration? There are many other texts in 
which the inspiration of the Bible is either 
directly expressed, or clearly implied. 

We cannot but suppose, that the Bishop 
has been too busy to examine this subject 
for himself, and has taken the dicta of cer- 
tain so-called learned men^ as indisput- 
able data for his positions, and has thus 
become the champion of most unfortunate 
errors. 

These positions are met, and we believe 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD! 15 

are fully refuted in the following essay, and 
various proofs are given to show, that the 
Bible rests on Divine authority, and that 
its writers were inspired in their utterances 
by the spirit of the living God. 

IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD TO MAN? 

IS IT INSPIKED? 

HOW IS IT INSPIEED? 

The three questions at the head of this 
article are intimately related, and appear, 
at first sight, to require but one and the 
same answer. For, if it can be proved that 
the Bible is the gift of God to man, then 
would it not follow, that as it consists of 
words, the words must have been given 
of God ! And if so, then the men who spoke 
the words must have received them from 
God, and this would be verbal inspiration. 
Now while this seems to be a valid conclu- 
sion, a little examination will show, there 
are other elements which need to be intro- 
duced which modify the conclusion. It is 
to be remembered that words are only the 
vehicles of thought, and of ideas. They 
are like ships which often carry gifts, while 
they are not the gifts themselves. So, if 
it can be shown that the Bible is the gift 
of God to man, it would not necessarily fol- 
low that the words, which are merely the 



16 IS THE BIBLE A GITT FEOM GOD? 

veMcles of the revelation, have also been 
given. As speech is a part of man's make- 
np, and is like the hand with which he con- 
veys his gifts to others, God might have 
committed His revelations to messengers to 
carry in their own intellectual hands to the 
people, as the apostles carried the loaves 
which the Saviour had multiplied, and dis- 
tributed them with their hands. It being 
the loaves which the Saviour gave to the 
people, not the apostles' hands. 

It is these facts which separate these 
questions, so that to prove that the Bible 
is the gift of God to man does not settle 
the question of the verbal inspiration of 
Holy Scripture. The Christian church 
which acknowledges that the Bible is in 
some sense the gift of God has been di- 
vided, and sometimes been rent asunder by 
difference of opinion as to inspiration, 
while discussions of this question have 
often hidden from view the greater ques- 
tion, '*Is the Bible a gift from God to 
man?" 

This last is the great question of all, and 
to it we are to address ourselves principally 
in these pages. But the others are very 
important and are connected with it, and 
so demand some consideration. Besides, 
there are certain facts in the Bible itself 
which lead to difficulties that can only be 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD? 17 

solved by the answer to the question: 
*^How is the Bible inspired?" Let us first 
then consider this question of inspiration. 

There is a theory, at one time widely 
held, which asserts the inspiration of the 
Bible while it practically denies it. It is 
this : that all books of genius are inspired, 
and as the Bible belongs to this class, of 
course, it must be inspired. This view re- 
duces inspiration to zero. For as many 
books of genius contradict each other, and 
especially contradict the Bible, the truth of 
a book would not follow from such inspira- 
tion. It is well known that the writings of 
Voltaire, Kousseau, Hobbes, Ingersoll, who 
were undoubtedly men of genius, with 
many others of the same class, flatly deny 
the teachings of the Bible, so that this kind 
of inspiration is of no religious value. This 
view must therefore be dismissed. 

Another view of inspiration is that God 
has revealed to certain men the truth of 
the Bible in words, and that therefore 
every word is divinely inspired. This the- 
ory was, many years ago, generally held. 
But certain facts have presented them- 
selves, which render the view untenable. 
We have before us the fact that the lan- 
guages in which both the Old and New Test- 
aments were given are now dead, and that 
the words in which they are now read by 



18 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD? 

Christians generally are the words of 
translators for whom inspiration is not 
claimed, and who have made numerous er- 
rors and mistakes in their translations. As 
the Great One who gave the revelation 
knew, that this would follow, it cannot be 
supposed that He selected the method of 
verbal inspiration. 

It is also to be noticed that the Saviour 
used and commended a translation of the 
Old Testament which contains many errors, 
although they are of a character not to mis- 
inform concerning religious doctrine. But 
what seems to settle the question is, that 
when the Saviour and His apostles quoted 
the Old Testament, they often did not quote 
the words but the sense of the passages. 

But there are other reasons for rejecting 
this view. If the words of the Bible had 
all been given to the messengers sent by 
God there would have been no difference of 
style in the language employed by these 
messengers. But so far from this being 
the case, the individuality of the prophets 
and other writers appears in almost every 
sentence. There is no mistaking the writ- 
ings of Isaiah for those of Jeremiah, nor 
those of Jeremiah for the writings of Eze- 
kiel. All the different prophets have pe- 
culiarities in their messages, which belong 
to themselves, and show that they used 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOd! 19 

their own words in delivering the revela- 
tions made to them. And so it clearly ap- 
pears that there is no verbal inspiration. 

There is another consideration, however, 
which must not be omitted. Suppose for 
a moment that the sacred Book had been 
verbally inspired, that every word had been 
given by God. Then, as God is true and 
infallible, and in every sense perfect, there 
would have been a perfect revelation, as 
far as it went, with every department of hu- 
man learning which it touched. As it deals 
with words, the subject-matter of gram- 
mar, it would have been grammatically per- 
fect. And so all grammarians would have 
had a perfect model of grammar, and there 
would have been no need of many of those 
researches and efforts in the perfecting of 
human speech, which have done so much to 
develop the human intellect. The Bible 
touches on science at many points. If sci- 
ence had been correctly and perfectly re- 
vealed at all these points, if, for instance, 
language had been used which would have 
correctly shown the cause of day and night, 
and of other phenomena alluded to, then 
there would have been less need for those 
scientific researches which have afforded a 
needed school to the human mind, and have 
been a demonstration of its wonderful pow- 
er and greatness. That this has not been 



20 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 

done shows, we think, the wisdom of Him, 
^ ' who knoweth whereof we are made ' ' ; and 
has so arranged it that His revelation to 
man of religion should not interfere with 
other schools through which He designed 
his creature man to pass. For all these rea- 
sons verbal inspiration must be set aside. 

There remains then the view, that in 
making a revelation God in some instances 
gave to certain men the ideas and truths 
which He wished to be communicated, and 
left them to use their own language in ex- 
pressing them. As He had given to man 
as much power to express thought, as He 
had given him capacity to understand it, 
this was sufficient. Others He impelled to 
write records of passing events, and to 
gather from various sources the histories 
and biographies and teachings which were 
needed to illustrate the truth of His revela- 
tion, and which they communicated in their 
own words. It is this view to which we are 
brought by the facts we have been consid- 
ering. 

From the foregoing discussion, we are 
prepared to call attention to a distinction 
which has not always been noticed, but 
which certainly exists ; we mean the distinc- 
tion between the Bible as a collection of his- 
tories, biographies, discourses, and moral 
teachings, and the Bible as a guide-book. 



IS THE BIBLE A GIET EROM GOD? 21 

As a guide-book to lead men to the salva- 
tion of their souls, to right views of all du- 
ties, both secular and religious, we claim it 
is infallible ; but as a collection of histories 
and biographies, etc., we regard it as par- 
taking of the nature of man, that is, as im- 
perfect and sometimes inaccurate. Now it 
will not be denied, that a man may be a safe 
guide through a wilderness and yet not give 
an accurate or even a correct view of the 
country through which he is leading a trav- 
eller. He may make mistakes as to the dis- 
tances between places, as to the height of 
mountains, as to the length of rivers, as to 
the names of towns, and other objects which 
he is passing, and yet be a perfectly reli- 
able, — ^may we not say, an infallible guide. 
It will also be admitted that a map may 
give a correct route between two cities, and 
enable passengers to make a journey from 
one to the other, and yet give wrong names 
to towns, wrong directions to rivers and 
other incorrect data, without the least dan- 
ger of leading astray. So we hold the Bible 
may be a correct, — ^may we not say an in- 
fallible guide, — to righteousness, to relig- 
ion, to moral duty and to heaven, and yet 
as a history and a series of biographies 
contain errors in dates, in grammar, in 
names of rivers, of countries, of towns, like 
other histories. 



22 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD? 

We go on now to observe that this result 
must have followed from the use of man 
as God's agent. Unless God had changed 
man into a perfect being, incapable of err- 
ing, man would from the necessity of an im- 
perfect and erring nature, and imperfect 
education, fall into error. Consider for a 
moment the facts of the case. 

First we notice that hmnan language is 
imperfect. It is well known that certain 
religious truths, now well understood, could 
not have been expressed in certain lan- 
guages until they had been developed to a 
certain extent. Hence before that develop- 
ment these truths would have been un- 
known to the people speaking those lan- 
guages. And so they could have had only 
an imperfect revelation. Then there are 
some ideas which could have been only 
partly made known in some languages. And 
so the people speaking those languages 
would only imperfectly understand them. 
Notice too that words often change their 
meanings, and so doctrines or revelations 
connected with such words would be liable 
to be misunderstood. Then some of God's 
messengers used better and clearer lan- 
guage than others, and so the clearness and 
intelligibility of some messages would be 
greater than that of others. It is well 
known to all students of the Bible that 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 23 

there are many passages in this sacred vol- 
ume which are so obscurely expressed that 
the meaning is not yet ascertained. Con- 
sider too, that the Jews had no certain 
measure of time, and that when they used 
the genealogical tables, taking generations 
as a measure, many links were often left 
out; hence their chronology is utterly de- 
fective. Now the Bible was not, as we have 
said, given to teach chronology, as it was 
not given to teach grammar, or rhetoric, or 
science, and so no attempt is made in the 
sacred volume to give views of these sub- 
jects. But all this does not, as we have 
said, prevent the Bible from being a safe 
guide for man, to virtue, to godliness, to 
salvation and to heaven. As the kings of 
the earth can use earthly and imperfect 
agents to carry their messages, and admin- 
ister their governments, much more can the 
great King of Kings, who is the creator 
and ruler of all things; and, as we shall 
show, has done so. 

Having thus pointed out, what it seems 
to us, is to be expected and what is not to 
be expected in a revelation from God, let 
us proceed to consider the reasons why we 
should regard the Bible as a book given by 
God to guide us to virtue and godliness and 
happiness here and hereafter. There are 
a great many different lines of argument 



24 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD'? 

which we believe lead clearly to this con- 
clusion. We propose to dwell on several 
of them, and shall begin with what seems 
to us to be the least important and go on 
to the more important. 

We first call attention to a great fact con- 
nected with the sacred volume which points 
clearly to a Divine origin. While the Bible 
does not teach science it does not contradict 
it. Though containing revelations made 
long before the dawn of modern science, 
it does not, when properly interpreted, con- 
flict with any of its teachings. This is 
very remarkable when we consider that it 
touches science at many points, and refers 
to great physical truths, without becoming 
in any sense a teacher or revealer of sci- 
ence. The Pentateuch, which contains an 
account of the creation, touches astronomy, 
geology, and physics at more than thirty 
points where comparisons can be made, and 
in no case is there a contradiction. It was 
held many years ago by men of science that 
the universe existed from eternity. But 
since the discovery of Tait's law of the de- 
generation of energy, it is now generally 
admitted that it must have had a begin- 
ning, as the book of Genesis declares. Then 
we have in the book of Genesis an account 
of the order in which the creation proceed- 
ed, and this is now received by scientific 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 25 

men. How did Moses get this information? 
Surely from no human source. For we have 
enough information of those early times to 
be sure, that no such knowledge existed at 
that time. When we consider that the other 
principal religious systems are full of sci- 
entific errors, we are brought to the con- 
clusion that Moses must have been divinely 
directed. Now as the Pentateuch is con- 
nected with the other books of the Bible by 
the cords of prophecy ; as it predicts a de- 
velopment of the Jewish people, related in 
those books, as we shall hereafter show, it 
follows, that the other books must partake 
of the same nature; that is, all must have 
been given through the direction of God. 

Another reason for believing that the Bi- 
ble is given by God to man is, that it has 
guided all who have accepted it, to a sup- 
port, which has sustained them in trials 
and sufferings, and given them strength to 
overcome obstacles and enemies, even when 
there was only tradition. This appears 
clearly in the case of many under the old 
dispensation. Jacob, when driven from his 
home, was sustained by the God of his fath- 
ers, and laid the foundation of the Jewish 
nation. Joseph, when sold into Egypt, did 
not forget his God when cast into prison, 
but was sustained by Him, and was raised 
to a high position of authority in Egypt, 



26 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 

which enabled him to make provision to 
save his kindred as well as surrounding na- 
tions from perishing by famine. The proph- 
ets, though persecuted and maltreated, 
were enabled to be faithful to their God 
even unto death, and the Jewish people 
were often saved from enemies fiercer than 
the lions from whose jaws Daniel was res- 
cued by his God. If we are to receive the 
histories sacred and profane which we have 
of the Jewish race, we cannot help but be- 
lieve, that this people have had a divine 
guidance and support. But we see a more 
striking illustration of God's support in the 
case of the early Christians. All who are 
familiar with their history in the first cen- 
turies of the Christian era know, that the 
Christian church was like Greek fire^ that 
burned under the water. It was opposed 
by all the temporal governments, all the 
philosophers, all the religions of the world. 
Its adherents and its propagators were con- 
tended with on the platform by the great 
orators of many cities ; were persecuted by 
the rulers and the soldiers and people of all 
the nations ; were attacked furiously by the 
religions of every country, and yet contin- 
ued their work with unabated zeal and earn- 
estness. Wlien in prison, they preached to 
their jailors and companions in suffering, 
and when tried before rulers and kings, 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 27 

they proclaimed to tliem the truths of their 
religion. They turned the scaffolds on 
which they were being executed into pul- 
pits, and from the flames and smoke of the 
funeral pyres where they were burning, 
preached the gospel of their Grod and Sav- 
iour. And their words of preaching and 
teaching were not in vain; for many who 
had been against them and had taken part 
in iDutting them to death were converted, 
and became in their turn Christian mar- 
tyrs ; so that "the blood of the martyrs was 
truly the seed of the church." Now what 
gave to these men the strength and power 
to do this wonderful work! It certainly 
was not hope of earthly reward; for these 
were not promised or expected. It was not 
the support of any worldly philosophy; for 
the Christians trampled earthly philosophy 
under their feet. Nor any of the motives 
such as were used by the Mahometan and 
other heathen religions. It must have been 
what was claimed, a divine power and im- 
pulse to which they were led by the teach- 
ings and truths contained in their guide- 
book, the Bible, impressed by a divine in- 
fluence. Surely this is strong proof that 
this guide-book was given by the God who 
gave the strength to those who used the 
book. 

But the fact that the religions and phil- 



28 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 

osophies and governments of the world 
were overcome and vanquished by Christi- 
anity is another proof, that this book which 
led to it all is from God. 

It is to be observed that it was the truths 
contained in this book, as well as the 
strength and fortitude given to the Chris- 
tians, which produced this result. The 
teachings and principles and sentiments of 
the philosophers and the religions of the 
world went down before the truth contained 
in the Bible like mists before the rising sun. 
The pride and ambition and lust and hu- 
man passion taught by the religions of the 
Eomans and Greeks, and personified in 
their gods, gave way to the love, and faith, 
and humanity, and righteousness taught by 
the apostles and exemplified by the great 
Jesus of Nazareth ; while the fatalism and 
stoicism of the Stoics were superseded by 
trust in the Sovereignty of God, and the 
self-sacrifice and purity and holiness 
taught by Christ and His apostles. The re- 
ligions of the Eomans, of the Grecians, and 
of all the surrounding nations are known 
now, only as some of the old cities in which 
they were taught and practiced — by sculp- 
tured monuments, and the mouldering 
ruins which tell they once existed; while 
Christianity, which their adherents sought 
to destroy, is growing like the little stone 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD? 29 

seen by the prophet, which continued to 
increase nntil it filled the earth. Surely 
these facts are eloquent voices which tell of 
the divine origin of the book whose teach- 
ings led to these results. 

Another testimony to the divine origin of 
this guide-book is found in the language in 
which the New Testament is written. As 
we have already observed, the languages in 
which the first books were given were so 
meagre and imperfect that many great 
truths could not be expressed in them. But 
before Christ came, a language had been 
prepared, the most perfect the world has 
ever seen. It had been extended in its 
range by the discussions of philosophers, 
and sharpened to express minute meta- 
physical distinctions by religious contro- 
versies. And so was ready to the hands of 
the great teachers of the Christian religion. 
This language had been adopted by the 
Jews, and not only by the Jews, but by all 
the most enlightened nations, and was used 
by Christ and his apostles. And thus Chris- 
tianity had an appropriate organ for its 
expression, and for its dissemination over 
the world. Now as all this was brought 
about without any plan or co-operation of 
men, — was accomplished by the unwilling 
working of human forces, there must have 
been some higher power directing them, 



30 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 

wMch points to a divine origin of the relig- 
ious guide-book, which we call the Bible. 

The agreement of the Bible with early 
histories, with the inscriptions on old mon- 
uments and temples, and with the writings 
on brick tablets and marble slabs dug from 
the ruins of ancient and buried cities, is 
a testimony to the truthfulness of the writ- 
ers of the Bible, though only fallible men. 
Professor Sayce, of England, one of the 
foremost archsBologists of modern times, 
tells us ; that the researches of archseolog}^ 
show, that the statements of the higher crit- 
ics who speak of the narratives of the Pen- 
tateuch, and other portions of the Old Tes- 
tament, as ^' myths and fables,'' have no 
foundation to rest on. According to him 
all that is contained in these ancient books 
are fully borne out by these researches. Dr. 
Glacer, the noted Arabian traveller, recent- 
ly gave a full account of a late find of a 
papyrus, throwing special light on biblical 
chronology. He tells us that from the in- 
formation given in this find, the Bible ac- 
counts are brought into wonderful accord, 
and harmony with the data taken from oth- 
er sources. Many of the tablets dug up 
from the ruins of a city, occupied by the 
Hebrews in the time of the Pharaoh of the 
Exodus, bear out the history of the Penta- 
teuch. Eev. Dr. VanDyke, a professor in 



rS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 31 

the Princeton University, tells us in a lec- 
ture recently delivered: ^'For the last fifty 
years historical explorers have been fishing 
up the massive evidence of facts to prove, 
that the Bible narratives are true and trust- 
worthy." Now if these biblical accounts 
are true, — ^be the testimony of trustworthy 
witnesses, — then the Bible religion must be 
given of God. For the miracles recorded, 
which are the main part of the narrative, 
clearly show this. The deliverance of Lot 
from Sodom; the rise of the slave Joseph 
to regal power, and his saving of the na- 
tions around Egypt from death by famine ; 
the exodus of the children of Israel from 
the land of Egypt, with the attendant mir- 
acles, could not have occurred without the 
intervention of more than human power, 
and is a testimony to the religion which is 
contained in the Bible. 

The facts and events of history thus pre- 
sented, we hold to be strong evidence to 
prove that the Bible was written under the 
direction of God. That it was given through 
the imperfect agent, man, is sufficient to 
account for various imperfections and triv- 
ial errors. The witnesses of events being 
men, there naturally occur the divergences 
in the testimony, which always are found 
when there are many witnesses. Then, 
there are imperfections in the narratives, 



32 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD? 

owing to the imperfections of human lan- 
guage; and there is want of chronological 
certainty due to the fact, that the object of 
the Bible was not to give a chronology to 
the world, which God thus emphasized. 
With these facts, that cannot be controvert- 
ed, admitted; many of the objections which 
have been so frequently made by men called 
learned, but who seem to be better versed 
in error than in truth, will vanish away. 
But the arguments we have so far brought 
forward are only preliminary to the proof 
we are now to present. We have advanced 
them because they meet objections which 
have been thrown across the way of the 
God-given guide. But they are to our main 
contentions only as John the Baptist to 
the great Messiah. We have spoken prin- 
cipally of the human element, we advance 
now to the divine. 

The prophecies which refer to the Jews 
and are fulfilled in their history are golden 
threads which bind together all the books 
of both the Old and the New Testaments, 
and show that they all proceeded from the 
same source, though often separated, by 
centuries. They show a development of 
this wonderful Hebrew people, and that it 
must have been under the guidance of Him 
who inspired the prophecies. They also in- 
dicate a government by an unseen power, 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 33 

in the way of rewards and punishments, 
through the medium, not only of surround- 
ing nations, but also by the forces of na- 
ture. In these great facts we have an argu- 
ment that the Bible came from a divine 
source which scatters to the wind all the 
objections brought against it in ancient and 
modern times. We proceed now to point 
out some of these prophetic facts. 

We take first that which will have the 
least force on account of doubts raised by 
the higher critics as to the author of the 
Pentateuch. We find the growth, the num- 
bers, the location, the political position, of 
the nation of the Israelites referred to and 
described, when as yet there were none of 
them. When Abraham, the progenitor of 
the nation, was wandering a stranger in the 
land of Canaan, God appeared to him, as 
we learn from the book of Genesis, and 
said : ^ ' I will make thy seed as the dust of 
the earth, and will make them to multiply 
as the stars of heaven, and I will give unto 
thy seed all these countries" (Gen. xiii) ; 
and again, ^^Unto thy seed have I given 
this land from the river of Egypt unto the 
great river, Euphrates.'' And lo, we learn 
from the history of the people of Israel and 
of the surrounding nations, that the de- 
scendants of Abraham multiplied until they 
numbered several millions in the land of 



34 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 

Egypt. Then coming out of Egypt they 
took possession of the countries referred 
to, became a great nation, and occupied 
them for centuries. And thus the prophe- 
cies to Abraham were fulfilled. To meet 
this contention it is said by opponents, that 
the Pentateuch was written long after the 
prophecies were fulfilled. Our reply is, that 
though Moses, who gave the account, which 
had no doubt been handed down from the 
time of Abraham, lived after the Israelites 
had increased greatly in numbers, yet the 
Israelites had not yet taken possession of 
the land, had not yet increased to many 
millions, had not yet become a great and 
powerful nation. And so the most import- 
ant part of the prophecy remained to be 
fulfilled, and was afterwards fulfilled, 
which gives as great force to the argument, 
as if the account had been written in the 
time of Abraham. 

But it is contended further that the Pen- 
tateuch was not the work of Moses, but of 
unknown persons at the time of the return 
of the Jews from captivity. But this as- 
sertion is made in the face of strong proof 
to the contrary. It is now well known that 
the Egyptians, at the time of Moses, were 
acquainted with letters and had a litera- 
ture. As Moses was adopted by the daugh- 
ter of Pharaoh, it is to be supposed he was 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 35 

educated and trained in all the learning of 
the Egyptians, as we are informed in Holy 
Scripture. Besides, it is evident from the 
late find in the land of Goshen where the 
Hebrews lived, where books printed in 
earthen tablets have been dug from the 
ruins of a buried city, which flourished at 
the time of the Exodus, that the knowledge 
of letters existed among the Hebrew peo- 
ple. AVTien we add to these facts that at 
Mount Sinai Moses brought to the people 
the law of his God written on tables of 
stone, it is proved beyond controversy that 
the Jewish people had a literature. This 
being so it would follow that Moses would 
use his knowledge for purposes of record 
as was done by all the nations around, and 
thus that he wrote or caused to be written 
the religious truths which had come down 
to him, and added to them the revelations 
which he himself received from the Lord. 
It is in view of these and other facts of 
archaeology, that many of the best informed 
scholars of the present day hold, that the 
Pentateuch was written at the time of 
Moses, by him or under his direction. As 
has been well said by the Eev. Henry Van- 
Dyke, an eminent professor of Princeton 
University: ''There is no reason under the 
heavens nor upon the earth, nor has any 
reason been discovered under the earth 



36 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT EBOM GOD? 

why we should not think that the substance 
and much of the actual language of this an- 
cient narrative, came to us from the hand 
of Moses. ' ' And so we have in the fulfill- 
ment of these prophecies to Abraham proof 
of the divine origin of the first books of 
the Bible. 

But this is only a small part of the proof ; 
these are only the first steps of the ladder 
that reaches to heaven. In connection with 
these prophecies, others of a different char- 
acter but more remarkable were made, to 
which we now turn. Not only were the 
growth and prosperity of the Hebrew peo- 
ple foretold, but what was far more strik- 
ing, their downfall, and dispersion, and 
persecution were most minutely described. 
Surely, Moses must have looked through 
the telescope of ages, made by the great 
Architect of the future, when he gave us 
the history of this Jewish nation. Hear 
him as he gives the words of the Lord with 
reference to this people : ^ ^ And I will scat- 
ter you among the heathen, and will draw 
out a sword after you : and your land shall 
be desolate, and your cities waste. And 
upon them that are left alive of you I will 
send a faintness into their hearts in the 
lands of their enemies; and the sound of 
a shaken leaf shall chase them — and ye 
shall have no power to stand before your 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT EKOM GOD? 37 

enemies — and yet for all that, when they 
be in the land of their enemies, I will not 
cast them away, neither will I abhor them, 
to destroy them utterly" (Lev. xxvi, 33, 
36, etc.). ''Thou shalt be removed into all 
the kingdoms of the earth" (Den. xxviii, 
25, etc.). "And it shall come to pass as 
the Lord rejoiced over you to do you good 
and to multiply you, so the Lord will re- 
joice over you to destroy you and bring you 
to naught — and the Lord will scatter thee 
among all people" (Deu. xxviii, 3, etc.). All 
the later prophets abound with similar pre- 
dictions. Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Amos, Hosea, 
Isaiah, especially enter into the particulars 
of their overthrow and their captivity, their 
persecutions and their sufferings. And the 
prophecies have all been fulfilled in the 
most remarkable manner. The Romans 
commenced the work. They overpowered 
the Jewish government at the coming of 
Christ, as foretold, carried them to Rome, 
and made them a by-word and a hissing. 
And then all the other nations took part in 
this sad work until the Jewish people scat- 
tered over the world were the scoff and 
the object of oppression of all the great 
powers of the earth. What is wonderful 
to note is, that while the captivities of other 
nations have ceased after a few genera- 
tions, that of the Jews has continued ac- 



38 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 

cording to prophecy, under the most dis- 
tressing circumstances, which are kept up 
the same ; while the conditions of the other 
nations are continually changing. The Jews 
seem to be reserved for the fulfillment of 
other prophecies, which tell of their res- 
toration to their own land, which is kept 
a wilderness, as if waiting for their return. 
And now various nations where they 
abound seem to be preparing to drive them 
out, as if these other prophecies were about 
to be fulfilled. Surely we have here the 
divine stamp and seal upon the books of the 
Bible in which these wonderful predictions 
are recorded. 

But there are other prophecies which 
show us clearly that the Bible has been 
given by God, and link the two Testaments 
together, which are still more striking. We 
allude to those which point to the Lord 
Jesus Christ, the great Messiah. In Him 
were fulfilled, not only the predictions of 
the prophets, but all the rites and ceremo- 
nies of the Jewish religion, showing that 
this religion was only preparatory to that 
which Christ established. This is intimated 
in the promise made to Abraham, when he 
was told that "in him were all the nations 
of the earth to be blessed." As the Jew- 
ish covenant was only for the Jews, this 
promise must have referred to the religion 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 39 

established by Christ, which was for all na- 
tions. This appears clearly in the prophe- 
cies in the Old Testament which refer to 
Jesus of Nazareth. From these prophecies 
we learn all the important particulars of 
his life. The time of his appearance, the 
place of his birth, the family ont of which 
he was to arise, his life and character, his 
miracles, his sufferings, his death, the na- 
ture of his doctrines, the design and effect 
of his coming, the extent of his kingdom are 
all clearly set forth. Let us now glance at 
a few of these prophecies, which, when 
viewed together, seem to make as clear as 
sunshine, the presence of God in the Bible. 
When Jacob blessed his sons he said con- 
cerning Judah, ^^The sceptre shall not de- 
part from Judah, nor a lawgiver from be- 
tween his feet till Shiloh come." We see 
this prediction fulfilled in the fact, that Ju- 
dah was ruled by its own king until the 
Saviour appeared, and then the sceptre 
held by Herod departed and fell into the 
hands of the Eomans. Malachi adds an- 
other prophecy of time. ** Behold, I send 
my messenger and he shall prepare the 
way before me, and the Lord whom ye seek 
shall suddenly come to his temple." This 
Scripture pointed evidently to Christ and 
His forerunner, John the Baptist, who 
pointed out Christ to the people at the time 



40 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 

of his baptism, that shortly preceded his 
entrance into the temple of Jerusalem. The 
prophet Haggai called attention to the com- 
ing Messiah, who was to appear before the 
destruction of the second temple. ^'The 
desire of all nations shall come, and I will 
fill this house with glory, says the Lord of 
Hosts. The glory of this latter house shall 
be greater than the former, saith the Lord 
of Hosts.'' This was accomplished when 
the great Son of God with His wonderful 
teachings came to the temple. In the proph- 
ecy of Daniel the kingdom of the Messiah is 
foretold as commencing in the fourth mon- 
archy, or Eoman Empire, and the number 
of years which were to elapse was indicat- 
ed. ^ ' Seventy weeks are determined upon 
thy people and upon the Holy City to finish 
the transgression and to make an end of 
sins ; to make reconciliation for iniquity, to 
bring in everlasting righteousness, and to 
seal up the vision and prophecy and to 
anoint the most holy. Know, therefore, and 
understand that from the going forth of 
the commandments to restore and to build 
Jerusalem unto the Messiah, the prince 
shall be seven weeks and three score and 
two weeks." Computation by weeks of 
years was common among the Jews, and in 
this case pointed out exactly the time be- 
tween the date of the commandment to 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT PKOM GOD? 41 

build the temple and the advent of the Mes- 
siah. 

Observe, too, that not only were the Jews 
in expectation of the coming of their Mes- 
siah, but the heathen who had imbibed 
some of the Jewish views from contact with 
that people expected the coming of a great 
teacher from heaven at that time. That 
the Messiah was to be a descendant of 
David and a native of Bethlehem are ex- 
pressly affirmed. ^' There shall come forth 
a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch 
shall grow out of his roots, and the spirit 
of the Lord shall rest upon him'' (Isa. xl, 
1). The place of the birth of the Messiah 
is thus clearly foretold. ' ^ Thou Bethlehem 
Ephratah, in the land of Judah, though 
thou be little among the thousands of Ju- 
dah, yet out of thee shall he come forth who 
is to be ruler in Israel, whose goings forth 
have been of old from everlasting" (Gen. 
X, 14). That all these predictions were ful- 
filled in Jesus Christ, we have the fullest 
evidence in the testimony of all the evan- 
gelists. The facts of his life are also most 
clearly pointed to. The obscurity, the mean- 
ness, and poverty of his external condition 
are thus represented. ^*He shall grow up 
before the Lord like a tender plant, and as 
a root out of a dry ground: He hath no 
form of comeliness ; and when we shall see 



42 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD? 

him there is no beauty that we should de- 
sire him. Thus saith the Lord to him whom 
man despiseth, to him whom the nation ab- 
horreth, to a servant of rulers, kings shall 
arise and see, princes also shall worship. '^ 
(Tsa. lii, 2.) The gospels which gave us the 
historj'- of the Saviour's life are but the 
repetition of these prophetic utterances, 
and show that the Saviour was sent by Him 
who gave them. It has been well said, '' ' that 
the riding of Christ in humble triumph into 
Jerusalem; his being betrayed for thirty 
pieces of silver, and scourged and buffeted, 
and spit upon; the piercing of his hands 
and of his feet ; the last offered draught of 
vinegar and gall; the parting of his rai- 
ment; and casting lots on his vesture; the 
manner of his death and his burial, and his 
rising again without seeing corruption 
were all expressly predicted, and all these 
predictions were literally fulfilled." 

The kinds of blessings which Christ 
would bring are also pointed out by the 
prophets. The prophet Isaiah thus speaks 
of them: **The eyes of the blind shall be 
opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be 
unstopped; the lame man shall leap as a 
hart and the tongue of the dumb shall 
sing." (Isa. xxxv, 5.) As we learn from 
the Gospels, this was the constant work of 
Christ. The death of Christ, which was as 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT EEOM GOD? 43 

unparalleled as his life, was also minutely 
described by the prophets. The prophet 
Daniel speaks of his being ^'cut off/' and, 
Zechariah uses these significant words: 
*' Awake, sword against my shepherd, 
and against the man that is my fellow saith 
the Lord of Hosts ; smite the shepherd and 
the sheep shall be scattered. They shall 
look upon him whom they have pierced and 
they shall mourn for him." (Zech. xiii.) 
But the prophet Isaiah gives the most com- 
plete and minute account of the Saviour's 
suffering and death, especially in that won- 
derful chapter, the 53rd, and in several oth- 
er chapters. We read : '^He is despised and 
rejected of men. He came unto his own 
and his own received him not. He had no- 
where to lay his head. A man of sorrows 
and acquainted with grief. AVe hid as it 
were our faces from him, he was despised 
and we esteemed him not. He was wound- 
ed, he was oppressed, he was afflicted, he 
was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, he 
was taken away by distress and by judg- 
ment. He was cut off from the land of the 
living. They made his grave with the 
wicked, but he was with the rich after his 
death." Here the wonderful events at the 
close of the Saviour's life are most mi- 
nutely described. As the translation of the 
Bible which describes them was made, as 



44 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 

caniiot be disputed, and is acknowledged 
by foes as well as friends, at least 200 years 
before the time of Christ, we have here a 
testimony to the divine origin of the Bible 
which should convince all reasonable minds. 
But we find the stamp and imprimatur of 
God equally plain on the pages of the New 
Testament. It appears not only in the 
prophecies of Christ and His apostles, but 
in the teachings and in their lives. Take 
first the prophecies. Christ plainly fore- 
told the destruction of Jerusalem, and the 
carrying away captive of the Israelites to 
a distant country. On one occasion as He 
was about to enter Jerusalem He stopped 
on the Mount of Olives and uttered these 
predictions. ^'When he came near he be- 
held the city and wept over it, saying: If 
thou hadst known, even thou the things 
which belong to thy peace but now they 
are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall 
come upon thee that thine enemies shall 
cast a trench about thee and compass thee 
round and keep thee in on every side, and 
shall lay thee even with the ground, and 
thy children within thee; and they shall 
not leave in thee one stone upon another, 
because thou knowest not the time of thy 
visitation.'' (Luke xix, 41, etc.) ^^They 
shall fall by the edge of the sword and be 
led captive unto all nations. This genera- 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 45 

tion shall not pass away till all these things 
be done." Histoiy attests the truth of 
these and other predictions so clearly that 
not even the more prejudiced can fail to see 
it. Even such great opponents of Chris- 
tianity as Porphyry, Celsus, and the Eo- 
man Emperor Julian could not challenge 
their existence and their fulfillment, though 
they endeavored to explain them away. 

There are various other prophecies 
found in the writings of the apostles which 
have been fulfilled, or are now being ful- 
filled, in the history of the Christian church, 
and of the nations of the earth, which 
equally show the hand of God. As the 
apostles knew that God was with them and 
that divine power was on their side, it 
would naturally be expected that they 
would, if left to themselves, have looked 
for ever-increasing success, and the tri- 
umph of their religion in a short time. But 
instead of this they predicted evils and 
defeats in the near and the far off future. 
St. Paul tells of a man of sin who was to 
arise in the church, who should claim al- 
most the power of God, and who was to do 
great mischief in the church. He also 
spoke of evil teachers, who were to come 
into the church like wolves into the fold, 
to tear the flock with erroneous and strange 
doctrines. Without pointing to the par- 



46 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? • 

ticular historic events, we see that his 
words have been fulfilled to the letter. 

But there are other kinds of evidence in 
the book itself to prove its divine origin. 
The history of Christ given in the Gospels 
is as full of di^dne light as the handwrit- 
ing on the walls of Belshazzar's palace, 
which was read by Daniel. While there 
may be some discrepancies, and some in- 
stances of want of harmony in the accounts 
of the four Gospels, they are few and triv- 
ial, and are there because human beings 
reported them. We do not fear to assert 
that no man, or company of men, could 
have invented a character so far above the 
ideals of all other writers, as Jesus the 
Christ. This fact is so striking that it has 
excited and occupied the attention of many 
thoughtful and great scholars, and has 
been the subject of their pens. We quote 
from one of them : 

^'The character of Jesus Christ, as it is 
delineated in the New Testament, is the 
highest pattern of virtue. The New Testa- 
ment has made his life and actions an es- 
sential portion of the moral teaching. In 
doing so it propounds the highest ideal of 
perfect morality, and does so successfully. 
This is to be found in no other system. Why 
is this? All the great teachers of the an- 
cient world were conscious of their own 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FBOM GOD? 47 

imperfection. Jesus alone was not. Not 
one of them, therefore, would have ven- 
tured to say, ^Practice not only what I 
preach, but find your complete and perfect 
rule of duty in my practice.' Would Soc- 
rates have ventured to do this I Would 
Plato? Would Aristotle 1 Would the most 
self-sufficient of the Stoics, whose philoso- 
phy may almost be called the philosophy of 
self-sufficiency 1 Yet Jesus has done it, and 
done it effectually. How, I ask, has this 
been possible? There is only one adequate 
answer. Jesus himself was fully conscious 
that He was morally perfect. If He was so, 
He must have been divine. 

*^ Another point is still more worthy of at- 
tention, for it forms the most remarkable 
characteristic which distinguishes Christi- 
anity from every human system. Jesus is 
not only the most perfect pattern of virtue 
but the highest incentive to the practice of 
it. Of the weakness of human nature all 
the great moralists of the ancient world 
were profoundly conscious. Thev vainly 
sought for a power that was capable of con- 
trollins: the violence of the passions. With 
this difficulty it is the sioecial function of 
Christianity to deal. What is its remedy 
for this defect? It propounds the person 
of its founder as the highest incentive to 
the practice of everything that is good and 



48 IS THE BIBLE A GIET FEOM GOD? 

holv. Faith in Him is declared to be a 
means of imparting to human nature a 
moral and spiritual strength of which it 
was previously destitute. ' ' The originality 
of the idea is unquestionable. But has it 
proved a mighty moral and spiritual pow- 
er? Mr. Lecky (a great English historian) 
shall answer the question. ' ' The ideal char- 
acter which it contains has done more to 
regenerate and soften mankind than all the 
disquisitions of philosophers, and all the 
exhortations of moralists. This being so 
we are in the presence of two facts, the 
conjoint force of which will go far to prove 
that there must be something in Christi- 
anity that is superhuman. ' ' It will also 
follow that the book which brings us this 
Christianity, which still exercises the same 
power, must have been sent by Him who 
gives the power accompanying it. 

The moral teachings of the New Testa- 
ment is another proof that the Bible is 
from God. While many of the truths of 
morality have been held by men in non- 
Christian lands, this fact is only a testi- 
mony to the teaching of Holy Scripture. 
For there we are told that many of these 
laws of God are written on the hearts of 
men. But it is only in the Bible that we 
find a full and perfect moral code. All 
systems outside the Bible are deficient in 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FROM GOD? 49 

many respects. As lias been well said: 
^'As great as are the powers of the ancient 
philosophers, they never rose to the con- 
ception of a law of duty obligatory toward 
every member of the hnman family. But 
the moral teachings of the Bible embrace 
in a few comprehensive principles the 
whole range of human duty. It deals with 
principles and leaves their application to 
the conscience of the individual. One of 
its most striking characteristics is that it 
bases duty on Love. But while love is its 
dominant principle, every other in man's 
moral constitution is appealed to in its one 
place, and proper subordination." All this 
is done, not in a dry code of rules, but in 
connection with striking events, and in par- 
abolic discourses on interesting occasions, 
so as to make the deepest impression and 
enforce the duty while not presenting it as 
a lesson. Who can suppose that narrow- 
minded Jews brought up in an atmosphere 
of social and national selfishness could of 
themselves have devised and carried out 
this wonderful work? It must be evident 
to every thinking mind that it is the work 
of a higher power and is the imprimatur 
of God on the Bible. 

But we pass on to another most impor- 
tant view of the Biblec One of the most 
wonderful features of this book is its unity. 



50 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GOD? 

Though it is the work of more than forty 
writers occupying various stations in life, 
and extending over more than a thousand 
years, each book helps in the development 
of the same subject. We quote again from 
the same writer : ^ ^ Portions of these books 
contain the details of legislation; others 
are hortatory; others contain predictions. 
A considerable number are historical, the 
general truths contained in which unbeliev- 
ers do not venture to question. A still 
larger number are poetic and contain po- 
etry of the highest order. A few are em- 
bodiments of practical wisdom. There is 
no similar literature that extends over even 
half this interval of time in which a simi- 
lar unity can be found. "What is the infer- 
ence that this remarkable fact suggests? 
The only possible answer is that there must 
have been an influence that has presided 
over this literature which has been exerted 
over no other, and leads to the belief of its 
divine origin." 

We have thus presented, very imperfect- 
ly, some of the arguments which clearly 
prove that the Bible is to be regarded as a 
gift from God to guide the human race to 
righteousness, to religious truth and to 
heaven. It is to be regarded as inspired 
because the truths it contains are beyond 
the ken and reach of man's intellectual abil- 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD! 51 

ity, and because it has unveiled the future 
to mortal eyes, as events have proved. At- 
tempts have been made to show that it is 
entirely the work of man. But as well at- 
tempt to show that the Alps are the work 
of men. For it were as easy to have pushed 
up the mountains from the depths of the 
earth, as to have foretold the history of the 
Jews, and of the surrounding nations. 

We ask the candid reader if he thinks it 
possible that all the proofs of truth which 
we have presented could meet in a book 
which was not true ! Could the Bible have 
been guarded from conflicts with the truths 
to be revealed in after ages by science, if 
the writers had not been guarded and 
guided by more than human foresight and 
power! Could a book contain truths that 
would lead to a source of strength and 
power, that would enable frail men and 
women to go successfully through the trials 
and troubles which the apostles and early 
Christians encountered, and give success 
to Christians since that time, and hot 
be more than human? Could it be the 
cause of the downfall and overthrow of 
the systems of heathen philosophers and 
heathen religions, if it stood on the same 
platform, with no more power than they 
possessed, and then continue to grow and 
flourish on their ruins ? 



52 IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FEOM GODT 

Is it a mere accident that the histories 
contained in the Bible, which have been 
attacked by writers of different ages and 
denied by them, have been frequently 
proved to be true by the monuments and 
records dug up from buried cities, and de- 
ciphered by learned men by keys that have 
been discovered at the same time? 

And above all and beyond all, does not 
prophecy clearly indicate that the Bible 
must be the gift of God ! When the history 
of the Jewish people, which is intertwined 
with those of the greatest nations of the 
earth, is clearly indicated long before it is 
actualized, does not this show the finger of 
God in prophecy? But this is not all. 

The life of the Lord Jesus Christ is a 
voice from heaven telling the sons and 
daughters of men that God is speaking to 
them. No such character ever appeared on 
earth before or since. And to put Him on 
a level with ordinary men is to show, either 
that he who does so has not fully studied 
the subject, or that he is without the dis- 
crimination needed for the study. The sim- 
ple study of His life has impressed many 
an able intellect and has brought some in 
subjection to His feet. 

Then look at the book itself and you will 
see a divine element. Stretching over more 
than a thousand years, the work of more 



IS THE BIBLE A GIFT FKOM GOD? 53 

than forty writers, it yet presents but one 
great subject, ever expanding and grow- 
ing. Like other of God's works, there 
is ^^ first the blade, then the ear, after that 
the full corn in the ear.'' When you look 
at the book itself you cannot but see that, 
differing from all other books in its growth 
as well as in its contents, it has on it the 
signature and the seal of the Ruler of all 
things. 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH AND 
WHAT IS IMPLIED IN THE NAME 

The discussion of the above subject has 
been ^^like a river that flows on forever. '^ 
After the Apostles had labored on the foun- 
dations of the Church, laid by Christ, until 
the superstructure, cemented by their 
blood, had begun to rise towards heaven, 
whither they had soon ascended, the dis- 
cussion as to what it was, and where it was, 
began. It was, at first, like a rivulet on 
the mountain top that softly and gently 
flows on its way. But later it became like 
the rivulet rolling down the mountain side 
and fed by other streams, on its way 
through the valleys and plains, until it 
swelled to a mighty river. Sometimes it 
has been like the father of waters, which, 
at times, overflowing its banks, has carried 
desolation to many fertile fields, and some- 
times like the Nile, whose golden flood, 
drawn off by canals to arid deserts, has 
made them blossom as the rose. It should 
be the aim of every one who contributes 
to this stream to have it, not as the Mis- 

54 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUKCH 55 

sissippi, but as the Nile. And this can only 
be done through the aid of Him who holds 
the oceans in the hollow of His hand, and 
turns the streams of water whither He will. 
This aid is now invoked. 

There is no subject which concerns the 
Christian more than that of the Church; 
and none around which hang more clouds 
and mists. We have in this paper joined 
the ranks of those who are striving to lift 
this curtain of cloud, and trust to give some 
aid in the endeavor, though it be but very- 
little. In doing this we expect to refer 
largely to Holy Scripture. If any reader 
should say, ''Why expect us to wade 
through a great flood of scripture texts?" 
we make answer, that the stream of Revela- 
tion surrounds every religious truth which, 
like an island, can only be reached by go- 
ing through the encompassing rivers. It is 
to be regretted that so many shrink from 
crossing these Jordans, that separate them 
from blissful Canaans, and wander away 
in the wilderness like the lost tribes of 
Israel. 

We begin by calling attention to the very 
general use of the title, ''The Holy Catho- 
lic Church," which is a hopeful sign for a 
reunited Christendom. It seems to have 
been like one of those vines that fixes itself 
upon the oak as soon as it emerges from 



56 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

the acorn, growing with its growth and lift- 
ed upon its branches, spreading as it de- 
velops, and thus, from the beginning, form- 
ing a part of the whole. It is found in the 
Apostles' creed, which, it is said, was be- 
gun in the Apostolic age, and since then 
has been on the lips of all Christian people. 
It appears in the Nicene creed, which came 
to the aid of the Apostles' creed to prevent 
some of the great doctrines of the Christian 
faith from being obscured or lost. It has 
been used in the ages, when the Church 
became sectarian, like the voice of a parent 
rebuking the children who were disposed to 
leave their home. And when the Christian 
family parted asunder, like the children of 
Noah at the building of the tower of Babel, 
it still was retained, to remind them that 
though separated they were one. In our 
day — the day of contradictions — ^when men 
call the Scriptures inspired, and then seek 
to prove they are not inspired; and call 
Christ the Lord, and then make Him out a 
mere man; and take their texts from the 
Bible, while they teach the doctrines of 
Plato and Socrates, and Channing and Dar- 
win, we have the term ^^ Catholic Church'' 
used most by those who most dwarf its 
meaning. But still the term has its mean- 
ing, and seems to call back those who have 
departed from a great truth. All Chris- 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 57 

tians use the term '' Catholic or Universal 
Church/' and contend that they belong to 
it, which it is our aim to endeavor to prove 
of nearly all of them. 

Let us then ask, what is the Holy Catho- 
lic Church, and who belong to if? 

The word church is used in the English 
version of the Bible as a translation of the 
Greek word which means an assembly of 
Christians ; that is, of those who profess to 
be the followers of Christ. The word was 
applied sometimes to a body of Christ's fol- 
lowers assembled in a particular place ; and 
sometimes to the whole body of those who 
constituted his kingdom. Thus we read in 
Mat. xviii, 17, that Christ said to His dis- 
ciples, * ^ If he shall neglect to hear the wit- 
nesses [about a brother offending] tell it 
unto the Church'' — that is, of course, a con- 
gregation of professing Christians ; and in 
Mat. xvi, 18, *^0n this rock I will build my 
Church" — that is, the great body of believ- 
ers who constitute the kingdom of Christ. 
In a similar manner the word church is 
used throughout the Bible. It clearly re- 
fers either to the whole body of professors 
of Christ's religion, or to any portion of 
that body in a particular place. In order 
to prepare the way for what is to follow, it 
is to be observed that Christ established 
His Church before he appointed His min- 



58 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

istry. The Apostles, when they were first 
called, were not ministers and preachers, 
but only disciples, and were of the same 
rank as all the other followers of the Sav- 
iour. All were the x^v^oi^ or called, and to- 
gether made up the Church. It appears 
that Christ gave to many of them the same 
work which He gave to His Apostles at that 
early period. He appointed seventy of them 
to go out, two by two, to the places where 
He was to come to call the people together, 
thus making of the people who would hear, 
the ^XX^V^^^> that they might form a part 
of the jA^roz. As it is held by many that 
Christ did not establish His Church, but 
left it to His Apostles to do so, we would 
call attention to some facts which prove 
that He did. 

This would seem to follow from the fact 
that baptism was practised by the disciples 
of Christ, of course by His direction. As 
baptism is the rite by which persons are 
introduced into the Church, it follows from 
its use that the Church must have been es- 
tablished at that time; otherwise there 
would have been nothing into which to bap- 
tize them. 

Moreover, Christ used language that 
showed that the Church was founded in His 
day and by Him. He spoke of His disciples 
as His * kittle flock.'' Addressing His dis- 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 59 

ciples He said, '^Fear not, little flock'' ; and 
again, Mat. xxvi, 31, ^'The sheep of the 
flock shall be scattered." In the book of 
Acts we read that St. Paul said to the min- 
isters of the Church, ^^Take heed to your- 
selves, and to the flock over which the Holy- 
Ghost has made you overseers, ' ' and in the 
same connection calls the flock the Church. 
St. Peter also calls the Church the flock. He 
writes to the ministers of the Church, 
^'Feed the flock of God which is among you, 
taking the oversight thereof, being exam- 
ples to the flock. ' ' And then he speaks of 
Christ as being the Chief Shepherd of the 
flock. When the Chief Shepherd came and 
there were sheep, then there was a flock. 
Now, if the words kingdom and church had 
not been used in the Bible, and only the 
word flock had been applied to Christ's fol- 
lowers, there would have been no doubt that 
Christ had established it before he left the 
earth. But as the word is used to indicate 
the same bodies precisely to which the 
words church and kingdom are applied, it 
is made clear that the Church was estab- 
lished in the lifetime of Christ. 

But this is not all. There is another ex- 
pression used by St. Paul which indicates 
the same thing. The Apostle called the 
Church the hody, of which Christ was the 
head. Col. i, 18, ^^He is the head of the 



60 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

body which is the Church.'' As the body 
is made up of members, as we are informed 
in the Bible, and as there were many of 
these members in the earthly lifetime of 
the Saviour, it follows that the Church was 
in existence at that time. 

As what has been said seems to fully es- 
tablish the position we have taken, we 
might consider this enough, and proceed 
to use what has thus been proved to estab- 
lish another position, which is the great ob- 
ject of this essay, but which is not gener- 
ally held. For this reason we shall call at- 
tention to other arguments which seem to 
us to irrefutably prove our point. 

While there is sometimes some difference 
in the meaning of the terms ^^ Kingdom of 
God'' and '^Church of God," they both 
often apply to the same body on earth. The 
Church of God is the company of all faith- 
ful people who are on earth, or have ever 
been on earth; while the Kingdom of God 
consists of these and all the other intelli- 
gent beings in heaven and in other worlds. 
But the term Kingdom of God is often used 
in a restricted sense, and refers to the ser- 
vants and children of God on earth; then 
it is synonymous with Church of God. This 
appears in the use of the terms by the Sav- 
iour and His Apostles. The Apostles were 
sent out to build up the Kingdom of Christ, 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUKCH 61 

John the Baptist proclaimed the ** King- 
dom of God is at hand." The Saviour 
said ^Hhe Kingdom of God is come to 
yon/' and the people were told to seek 
the Kingdom of God and His righteous- 
ness. Yet the Apostles generally spoke 
of it as the Church, and called on the 
people to become members not of the 
Kingdom, but of the Church. We read, 
"the Lord added to the Church daily 
such as should be saved." (Acts ii, 4-7.) 
And again that Christ was "Head over all 
things to the Church. ' ' On the other hand, 
the Saviour, in the prayer which He gave 
to His disciples to be used in all ages, does 
not mention the Church, but prays for the 
Kingdom that it should come, or be estab- 
lished. And so the words very often have 
the same meaning. And so when the Sav- 
iour came to the earth and began His work, 
calling men into His Kingdom, His Church 
had its commencement. 

Having thus seen that the Church of 
Christ was brought into existence before 
the ministry was given charge of the work, 
we are prepared to take up the question, 
what constituted the essence, or perhaps it 
would be better to say, the vital elements 
of the Christian Church? Many of the an- 
swers to this question are the Pandora 
boxes out of which have flowed the discards 



62 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

that have divided asunder the Christian 
world. The true answer has, we believe, 
been more than once proclaimed ; but it re- 
mains that it shall be used. 

Some of the answers must be disposed of 
before the true one will be generally adopt- 
ed. We take up one that has dominated a 
large part of the Christian world, which 
seems to be a part of the rock of truth, but 
which we believe is only shifting sand. 

It has been widely taught that the apos- 
tolic ministry, consisting of bishops, priests 
and deacons, especially the bishops of apos- 
tolic succession, is the chief element of the 
Christian Church. Without these, it is said, 
there can be no Church. Though the Bible 
be received and taught and followed, as 
far as the readers know how, and though 
the sacraments be observed, if there be not 
a ministry with bishops of apostolic succes- 
sion, there can be no Christian Church. On 
the other hand, if there be such a ministry 
with the apostolic succession, though the 
teaching of the Bible be not followed to any 
great extent; though the sacraments be 
used in a way not fully in accord with Bi- 
ble teachings; though there be taught for 
doctrines the commandments of men; 
though immoralities and other evils 
abound, yet still there is the Church of 
God. 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 63 

Now, is it not a sufficient answer to this 
position to show, as we have done, that 
the Church of Christ existed before there 
was this apostolic ministry? Surely if it 
could exist without it at any time it is not 
an essential element, and if so, then the 
contention is fully met and refuted. 

But just here an objection is presented 
which we must not pass by. It is held that 
if Christ did organize a Church before He 
appointed His apostles it was because He 
was himself present with the Church to 
teach it, and rule over it, and influence it. 
But when He withdrew, it was needed that 
His place should be supplied. And so the 
apostles were appointed to take His place, 
to be His vicegerents and successors. And 
it is held that the Church can no more exist 
without these representatives than it could 
have existed without Christ himself. We 
admit that this might be true if Christ were 
a mere man. Then He would need a suc- 
cessor of this kind. But inasmuch as He is 
God as well as man the case is different. 
For being God He can be present as God, 
though absent as man. And this He dis- 
tinctly taught His disciples with His own 
lips, while His teaching was repeated by 
the apostles. He said to the disciples He 
would not be absent from them in the truest 
sense, but would be with them to the end 



64 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 

of the world. His presence was to be a 
spiritual presence, real, though not visible, 
and better than a physical presence, be- 
cause it would envelop them with its influ- 
ence. It would be to them life, and would 
give them strength like the air they 
breathed. It would comfort them in sor- 
row and help their ignorance, and cheer 
their solitude ; and so would be to them all 
they needed, and this influence was equally 
shared by the disciples. All were alike in 
this respect. The apostles, therefore, were 
not to take His place. They were to do just 
what they did while He was upon earth. 
They were to lead sinners to Him, as An- 
drew led his brother Simon, and as the 
woman of Samaria led her kinsmen and 
friends, and Christ would himself, by the 
Holy Spirit, meet them and receive them. 
St. Paul taught this view on many occa- 
sions. He said to the man who was healed 
at his word, ^^ Jesus Christ maketh thee 
whole. ' ' He said that he himself was weak, 
but ' ' could do all things through Christ that 
strengthened him." Moreover, he said of 
Christ after the Saviour had ascended to 
heaven, ** Neither received I the gospel of 
man, neither was I taught it but by the rev- 
elation of Jesus Christ." (Gal. i, 12.) 
Christ also showed that He could be pres- 
ent, when absent in the body, by healing 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHTJKCH 65 

two persons at a distance from Himself. It 
appears, therefore, most clearly that as 
Christ is Himself present by the Spirit in 
His Church, He did not need the apostles 
and their successors to take His grace and 
influences to flow to men through the words 
and through the touch of those who 
claim the apostolic succession. For Christ 
being present by His Spirit will Himself 
give to those who ask Him, as is most dis- 
tinctly taught in Holy Scripture, ^^Ask and 
ye shall receive, seek and ye shall find, 
knock and it shall be opened to you. ' ' And 
again, ^ ^ If ye being evil know how to give 
good gifts unto your children, how much 
more shall your Heavenly Father give His 
Holy Spirit to them who ask Him." That 
this is the true view, appears from the fact 
that when, at the time of the Eeformation, 
the reformers separated from the apostolic 
succession to secure the Bible and a pure 
and Scriptural form of doctrine and wor- 
ship, so far from losing the graces of the 
Spirit and the influences from on high, 
there was a gain, and the Protestant 
Churches surpassed the Roman Churches 
of apostolic succession, which they had left, 
in all the graces and virtues of Christianity. 
And so the contention that an apostolic 
ministry is needed because Christ has left 
the world, to take His place and bestow 



66 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUKCH 

spiritual blessings by tbeir touch and com- 
mand, is not supported either by Scripture 
or by facts. 

The question then comes up again, what 
is the essence of the Christian Church, with 
which there is a Church, and without which 
there is none? We think this question is 
involved in that which was asked by the 
Jews who came to the Saviour on one of his 
visits to the temple in Jerusalem, to know 
what was required in order to be a Chris- 
tian, ''What must we do in order to work 
the works of GodT' The Saviour's reply 
was : *'This is the work of God, that ye be- 
lieve on Him whom He hath sent.'' That 
is, so believe on Him as to receive His 
teachings and carry them out. The acting 
on His teachings was a part of the faith 
which Christ exacted and which made it a 
living faith. And again, in the same dis- 
course. He repeated the teaching in other 
words : ' * This is the will of My Father, that 
every one which seeth the Son and believ- 
eth on Him may have everlasting life," 
( Jno. vi, 40) . Here it is distinctly asserted 
that a person can receive Christ and be- 
come His follower without any other influ- 
ence than that which flows from Christ 
Himself; the seeing Christ was the appre- 
hending Him as the Saviour, and the be- 
lieving on Him was the trusting in and the 



jy 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUKCH 67 

dedication of self to His service. Christ 
made it plain in all His teachings that those 
who accepted Him in this way would be 
accepted by Him. ^ ^ Whosoever, ' ' He said, 
**cometh to me I will in no way cast out, 
( Jno. vi, 37.) The subsequent baptism and 
laying on of hands on the part of the min- 
isters and bishops were but the signs and 
seals of what had already taken places — the 
** outward and visible signs of the inward 
and spiritual grace, ' ' which was the essence 
of Christ's religion. 

This view was held by the reformers in 
the Church of England, and is thus em- 
phatically stated by Bishop Lightfoot, one 
of the leading divines of the Church of 
England of modern times. ^'The Kingdom 
of Christ has no sacerdotal system. It in- 
terposes no sacrificial tribe or class between 
God and man, by whose instrumentality 
alone God is reconciled and man forgiven. 
Each individual member holds personal 
communion with the Divine Head. To Him 
immediately he is responsible, and from 
Him directly he obtains pardon and derives 
strength. ' ' This being true, what is needed 
to build up the Church is simply to bring 
men to Christ, and it remains for them to 
offer themselves to Him and He will ac- 
cept them, and thus is His Church built up. 
The office, then, of the Christian ministry 



68 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 

is: firstly, to instruct the people in the 
truths of the Christian religion, and lead 
them to the Saviour, present, though invis- 
ible, who receives and blesses them; while 
the gracious influences of the Holy Spirit 
are imparted, not through the intervention 
and touch of the ministers, but by the living 
touch of that Spirit, who is present every- 
where, and can touch every human soul, 
which man cannot do. The second office of 
the ministry after receiving those who have 
come to Christ, by the signs and seals 
which Christ has instituted to show his ac- 
ceptance, is to watch over and govern them, 
lest they go astray. 

It is just here that the difference between 
the ministry of the Mosaic and of the Chris- 
tian Churches appears. The priesthood 
formed a part of the religion and ceremo- 
nial of the Jews. The priests were the me- 
diators between God and the people. The 
members of the Jewish Church could not 
offer a sacrifice themselves ; it must be of- 
fered by a priest. They could not send up 
the incense which typified prayer; it must 
be done by the priest. They could not ap- 
proach the presence of the Lord in the Holy 
of Holies ; the High Priest must enter the 
most Holy Place for them, and plead for 
them. In all these things they were the 
ttfpes of Christ, not of his ministers. When 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUKCH 69 

Christ came He did all these things for 
those who would become His disciples. '^By 
His one sacrifice of Himself, He forever 
perfected those who are sanctified/' (Heb. 
X, 14.) And so in the communion service 
the members of the Church are taught, that 
Christ, ^'made on the cross by His one obla- 
tion of Himself once offered a full, perfect 
and sufficient sacrifice, oblation and satis- 
faction for the sins of the whole world." 
There is no need of any more sacrifice, and 
it follows there is no need of any priest to 
offer it. All that is needed now is for the 
ministers to let people know of the sacrifice 
and to continue a perpetual memorial of 
that. His precious death and sacrifice, that 
it may not be lost sight of until His coming 
again. The only offering that is made is 
the offering on the part of Christians of 
themselves and their thanksgivings, and 
these every Christian makes for himself, 
for no other can do it. 

And so the ministry of the Christian 
Church has none of the special functions of 
the Jewish priesthood. It is therefore clear 
that they are in error who hold that the 
Christian ministry is a priesthood, and as 
such a part of the essence of the Church. 
But as carpenters are needed to build 
houses, and governors to govern cities, so 
are ministers needed for the growth and 



70 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 

extension and government of the Christian 
Church. As St. Paul said, ^'How can they 
believe on Him of whom they have not 
heard, and how can they hear without a 
preacher, and how can they preach except 
they be sentf " (Rom. x, 14.) And so pro- 
vision was made by Christ for these needs. 
The Saviour gave to His Apostles the com- 
mission to send ministers out to carry on 
this work, and the Apostles laid their hands 
on those they sent. Now it would appear 
that this fact of ordination implies a suc- 
cession, and so we have apostolic succession 
in connection with the office of the Bishops. 
How then can a church have a Christian 
ministry without this succession? We think 
the answer to this question comes out of 
Holy Scripture, and is implied in many 
passages. 

St. Paul, who was the principal organizer 
of the Church among the Gentiles, gave the 
directions to Timothy and Titus, the first 
bishops on which the doctrine of the apos- 
tolic succession is principally founded, and 
from these directions may be vindicated the 
departure from that succession. It appears 
that the design of the succession through 
the la^dng on of hands was to secure true 
gospel teaching. The iVpostle in giving di- 
rections to Timothy whom he had appoint- 
ed Bishop said (1 Tim. iv, 6), ^^If thou put 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 71 

the brethren in mind of these things [the 
truths of the gospel] thou shalt be a good 
minister of Jesus Christ. ' ' And again, re- 
ferring to the same truths, ''These things 
command and teach. " (1 Tim. iv, 11.) He 
says still further, ''Take heed to thyself 
and thy teaching, continue in these things, 
for in doing this thou shalt both save thy- 
self and them that hear thee. ' ' He further 
directs him as to those who shall be com- 
missioned by him to be ministers and bish- 
ops in the Church. They must be men con- 
scientious and educated for the work. He 
says, "The things which thou hast heard 
from me among many witnesses, the same 
commit thou to faithful men who shall be 
able to teach others also.'' To Titus whom 
he had commissioned bishop of Crete he 
says, "A bishop must hold to the faithful 
word which is according to the teaching, 
that he may be able both to exhort and to 
convince the gainsayers." As it is evident 
from these and other passages that the ob- 
ject of succession was to secure good and 
true teachers of the gospel, it follows, that 
when the laying on of hands ceased to be 
used for these purposes, and was used for 
other purposes, it ceased to be a true apos- 
tolical succession. 

No one who is at all familiar with the 
history of the Christian Church can fail to 



72 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 

see that this sad result had followed before 
the time of the Eeformation. What did 
apostolic succession accomplish in those de- 
generate times but to subvert the gospel of 
the Lord Jesus Christ! If any one should 
regard this language as too strong, let him 
consider the facts of the case. Observe that 
apostolic succession being regarded in 
those early times as the channel through 
which flowed the power to govern the 
Church, and also to give the graces of the 
Christian religion, it gave to those who 
received it an authority and influence over 
the people, which enabled them to lead the 
people whither they would. For how could 
those who believed that a set of men had 
been vested with the power of the Al- 
mighty, refuse to yield to them? Here was 
the sceptre with which the Eoman hier- 
archy ruled the world. And we all know 
how it was used. It was used to build up 
a great worldly empire. The Kingdom of 
Christ, with its graces of faith, hope, love, 
and humility, went down before the ambi- 
tion and lust for pleasure and power of its 
ministers, and a worldly kingdom arose in 
its place. The sword of Peter, which Christ 
commanded to be sheathed, was drawn 
from its scabbard, to be used instead of the 
sword of the Spirit, and treachery, trickery 
and deception, the weapons of diplomats, 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUKCH 73 

became the implements of the rulers and 
servants of the Church. Apostolic succes- 
sion, with the claim that it gave power to 
bestow the graces of religion, was used to 
capture and hold the people, and soon the 
Eoman hierarchy harnessed kings to its 
chariots and was drawn by them in its tri- 
umphal processions. The spiritual rulers 
of this religious kingdom soon surpassed 
the kings and rulers of earthly empires in 
all vices and sins. 

We could not give pictures of the lives 
of any number of the popes, the cardinals, 
the archbishops, the priests, the deacons, 
the leading laymen of the Church, without 
shocking the sensibilities of all Christian 
people. Judas finds his peers among them, 
and Simon, the sorcerer, who wished to 
purchase from St. Peter miraculous power 
to fill his own pockets with money, could 
scarcely count the number of his successors 
and followers. Among the multitudes who 
held positions in the Church through a so- 
called apostolic succession^ there could be 
found only here and there a man who was 
not stained with darkest sin. But why, it 
will be asked, refer to such dark events as 
these; why call attention to facts which 
only throw discredit and disgrace on the 
Christian cause I Why, but because a false 
apostolic succession brings them before us 



74 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

to demonstrate what an evil it may become. 
Through a long stretch of years not bright 
with the light of virtue and religion, but 
dark with deeds of shame and sin, through 
living links, not of God's servants, but of 
servants of sin and Satan, has come down 
through the Eoman and Greek Churches 
what is called ^ ' apostolic succession. ' ' This 
is a truth which no Church historian can 
deny, and we refer to it now in the interest 
of the Holy Catholic Church, as will pres- 
ently appear. 

Observe next that Luther and other re- 
formers in the fifteenth century were | 
aroused by these evils to seek a reforma- 
tion in the Christian Church. It was their 
aim to turn men from their service of sin 
— from these practices of evil — to the ser- 
vice of the living God. They called on the k 
bishops and other ministers to mend their i * 
ways, and not make of themselves a succes- 
sion of teachers of evil, but of teachers of 
goodness and righteousness. When these 
rulers and leaders in the Church refused to 
do this, then the great reformer and his as- 
sociates broke the chain which held them to 
all this corruption and sin, that they might 
renew that which would bind them to the 
good, and to the Lord of all goodness and 
truth. 

Who will say that Luther and the re- 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 75 

formers in Switzerland, in France, in Hol- 
land, who followed in his footsteps, were 
not in the right f Had they not broken this 
chain of corruption which bound them to so 
many erroneous and strange doctrines the 
Christian Church would have continued 
with accelerated speed on the downward 
grade on which it had been departing from 
gospel truth for so many years, until every 
teaching of Christ and His apostles had 
been left behind. Surely they must break 
the chain which bound the Church, if they 
would have it follow their Master. 

And we hold that they were commanded 
by St. Paul to do this in the instructions 
which he gave to the bishops, Timothy and 
Titus, and to the disciples who had become 
Christians under his teaching. In his Epis- 
tle to the Galatians he warns them against 
ministers who taught error. '^Though we 
or an angel from heaven should preach 
unto you any other gospel than that we 
have preached unto you let him be anath- 
ema^ \- that is, cast out from the Church. 
And again, ' ^ Follow me as I follow Christ, ' ' 
which involves the converse, ^'Do not fol- 
low me if I do not follow Him" ; and to Ti- 
tus he wrote, ' ' There are many unruly men, 
vain talkers and deceivers, teaching thin-gs 
which they ought not, whose mouths must 
be stopped. ' ' Of course, as Luther and his 



76 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

co-workers could not depose the Pope 
and his associate cardinals, bishops, and 
priests, the only way left for them to stop 
their mouths, as far as they themselves 
were concerned, was to separate from them. 
When the wounded and gangrened limb 
cannot be restored, and is spreading its dis- 
ease over the whole body, the only safe 
course is to cut it off, and thus separate 
from it. And when the limb is cut off the 
body is not destroyed, but saved alive. And 
so the course of Luther and the reformers 
did not take them out of the Churchy but 
saved it and themselves. In the Church of 
England the case was different. In Eng- 
land the reformers consisted of bishops as 
well as other ministers, and a host of lay- 
men. And for this reason we believe in 
their succession, because it conduced to a 
succession of God's truth and revelation. 

We have thus presented to us the Chris- 
tian Church, with one part separated from 
an apostolic succession of bishops, in order 
to continue a faithful Church, and another 
holding on to it, because it aided to pre- 
serve the Church from erroneous and 
strange doctrines; and are thus led to see 
what constitutes a true ministry, and when 
the apostolic succession is a true succes- 
sion. And it ought to be particularly ob- 
served, and is made prominent in the his- 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 77 

tory of the Clmrch, that these various 
Christian bodies recognized each other as 
Churches, acknowledged each other's min- 
isters, and communed together when the 
separation from the Eoman Church first 
took place. 

This fact calls our attention to the word 
catholic, contained in the Creed, to which 
we now turn. Some time after the apostles 
had left the earthly field of their labors 
there arose men who taught doctrines which 
seemed to the authorities in the Church to 
be subversive of the gospel of Christ, and 
so they separated from them. But in order 
to show that they regarded as the Church 
of Christ all who were a part of his body, 
and that they did not design to leave out 
any who were Christians, they attached to 
the word Church the word catholic, or uni- 
versal. As this Creed must be received by 
all the members of the Church, it imposed 
upon them in this title the duty of acJcnoivl- 
edging as hr others and fellow-members all 
who properly have the name of Christian. 
That this was the view held by the early 
Church appears from the definition of the 
Church given by its leading iDishops. And 
we now dwell upon these teachings because 
we think they have been used like cannons 
turned against those whom they were de- 
signed to defend. We begin with bishops 



78 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 

whose lives touched the apostolic period. 
Ignatius, who lived when the fires of per- 
secution were burning, and who longed to 
rise to heaven in a chariot of fire, like Eli- 
jah, gives this definition of the Church: 
*^ Where Jesus Christ is, there is the 
Church. ' ' It follows from these words that 
as Christ is with all His people, if it be 
admitted that any denomination of so- 
called Christians have His presence they 
must be admitted to be a part of His 
Church. 

IrenaBus, another of the Church's mar- 
tyrs, who passed to his reward through 
a furnace of fire, gives another definition 
which covers the whole field of the saved. 
He says: ^'Ubi ecclesia ibi spiritus Dei, et 
ubi spiritus Dei illec ecclesia, et omnia gra- 
tia." From this it follows, that whosoever 
has the spirit of God, is in the Christian 
Church, and if it be acknowledged of any 
persons, or denomination of persons, that 
they have the spirit of God, it follows from 
this definition of Irenseus that they belong 
to the Church of Christ. 

The same position is taken by many oth- 
ers of later date. Justin Martyr, the first 
great leader of the Christian Church on 
the polemical Arena, has this to say of the 
Christian Cbui^ch. ^*The faithful in Christ 
are one hody/^ He says further, ^^ Though 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 79 

the members are enumerated as many, all 
together are called one, and are one body/' 
As all who are Christians are part of 
Christ's body, to acknowledge the Chris- 
tians outside the Episcopal Churches to be 
a part of His body, is, according to Justin 
Martyr, to acknowledge them to be a part 
of the Christian Church. 

We come now to the greatest scholar and 
most learned man of the early Church, Ori- 
gen, the ''primus inter pares" of the an- 
cient Christian scholars. He tells us that 
out of the Bible comes this definition of the 
Christian Church. ''The divine oracles," 
he says, "describe the whole Church of 
God as the body of Christ animated by the 
Son of God, the members of the body being 
all who believe in Him." 

According to these and many other defi- 
nitions, given by the ancient fathers of va- 
rious ages, which might be quoted if time 
permitted, the Catholic Church consists of 
the tvhole body of Christian believers in the 
world, who accept Christ as their leader, 
and seek to follow Him and serve Him. In 
truth it consists of the first of those two 
classes into which Christ Himself divided 
the world, viz.: those who were for Him, 
and those who were against Him. 

But we shall be reminded now of a fact 
which at first sight appears to turn these 



80 THE HOLY CATHOLIC OHUBCH 

early writers against our position, or if not, 
to turn them against themselves, and thus 
reduce their testimony to zero. That this 
does not follow, but that their testimony is 
a side light to our position, and gives it 
new power, a little examination will show. 

All these early writers, with perhaps one 
or two exceptions, laid great stress on 
Episcopacy, and spoke of it as one of the 
foundation stones of the Church. Origen 
uses this strong language : ^ ^ You ought to 
know your bishops as holding the place of 
Christ,'* and Irenaeus, in full harmony with 
Ignatius and many others of the early fath- 
ers, speaks of ^^the distinctive manifesta- 
tion of the body of Christ according to the 
succession of the Bishops, by which they 
have handed down that Church which exists 
in every place, and has come even unto us.'' 

But wh^ did they lay such stress on Epis- 
copacy? Here is a question which will 
bring before us the kernel of the whole sub- 
ject, and the answer to which will sweep 
away the whole foundation and all the su- 
perstructure of those who receive and sup- 
port the Eoman view of apostolic succes- 
sion. 

These early theologians, fathers as they 
are called, held to this apostolic succession 
because they believed, and plainly tell us so, 
that it secured for the Church the teacJvings 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 81 

of Christ and His apostles, and all tJie 
truths of the gospel. No one can fail to see 
this who will carefully read any of their 
controversial writings. Who can make any- 
thing else out of these words of Irenseus: 
**In the Church, the apostles, like a rich 
man depositing his money in a bank, lodged 
all things pertaining to the truth, so that 
from her every man whosoever will can 
draw the water of life," and again: 
'* Wherefore we ought to obey the presby- 
ters who are in the Church, who Ifiave the 
succession from the apostles, as we have 
shown, who, with the succession of the epis- 
copate, have received the sure gift of truth, 
according to the fathers' good pleasure." 

The above quotations show the animus 
of nearly all the ancient fathers. 

Is it not plain from these quotations that 
these church fathers, as so many delight 
to call them, who do not follow them, prized 
the Episcopacy and condemned all who did 
not agree with them, because it seemed to 
be associated with gospel truths and to be 
indeed its main hidwarh? And is it not an 
unavoidable conclusion, that if the bishops 
had lacked that qualification which these 
fathers represented as all important; if 
they had not held, nor taught the gospel 
truths which the fathers proclaimed to be 
the great essentials of the Christian relig- 



82 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 

ion, then would these same fathers have 
acted as Luther and the reformers subse- 
quently did, that is, would have separated 
from them? That such would have been 
their course is clear from the language 
which they used with reference to heretics, 
some of whom were bishops. We have time 
to quote only the words of Irens&us, who 
represents heretics ^'as the enemies of the 
truth, and sons of Satan, and will be swal- 
lowed up by hell, like the company of 
Korah, Dathan and Abiram/' 

But there is another part of the title of 
the Christian Church to which we must now 
turn — ^viz., Holy. The Church is not only 
called Catholic, but, in the Apostles ' Creed, 
the Holy Catholic Church. The word holy 
serves to bind to the Church the meaning 
which we have been considering. It seems 
indeed designed to prevent any loophole 
of escape for those who would shut out of 
the Church some who, they admit, will enter 
heaven. If it should be asked if there is 
any word which will take in all who are to 
enter the kingdom of heaven, we would be 
constrained to reply in the affirmative, and 
to designate the word holy. 

We read in Leviticus, as addressed to the 
children of Israel, **Be ye holy, for I am 
holy, saith the Lord." To make them so 
was the great object of their ceremonial 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 83 

systems. And then, in the Epistle to the 
Hebrews, we read that '^without holiness 
no man shall see the Lord.'' In other words, 
it is the possessiofi of Christian holiness, 
which comes through the work of Christ, 
and also of the Holy Ghost, which enables 
man to enter heaven. Whoever possesses 
this holiness is like God, and will be re- 
ceived by Him into those habitations pre- 
pared for His servants and children. And 
so the word is appended to the Church to 
take in all who are to enter heaven. The 
Holy Church means that body which em- 
braces all who are holy, and are to enter 
heaven. 

Having thus seen what is meant by the 
^'Holy Catholic Church," let us ask why 
this article was placed in the creed. The 
answer to this question we believe to be of 
vast moment, as it involves the unity of 
Christ's Church. Can we suppose for a 
moment that it was placed there to be a 
dead letter? to announce a truth which was 
designed to be ignored or thrust aside as 
of no practical value? Surely not. The 
creed is designed to place before the 
Church the vital truths of the Christian re- 
ligion to be acted on by those who receive 
them. As the Christian is expected to 
serve the Lord whom he confesses; to ac- 
cept the atonement of Christ whom he pro- 



84 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

f esses to believe in, and to follow Him; 
to prepare for the resurrection in which he 
announces his faith; to seek the influences 
of the Spirit in whom he declares he be- 
lieves; so this announcement of his belief 
in the Holy Catholic Church has its practi- 
cal side, and involves Christian action. As 
if it was feared that this might not follow, 
the action referred to is pointed out in the 
next clause, ^'The communion of Saints.^' 
All who are Saints or holy, are expected, 
and must we not say are required by this 
creed, to have communion together? And 
is not he who refuses to have any fellow- 
ship or communion with those whom he ac- 
knowledges to be Holy, and therefore mem- 
bers of Christ's Church, ignoring and cast- 
ing discredit on the creed while he professes 
to receive? 

In former years the Protestant Episco- 
pal Church of England acknowledged all 
the Churches of the Eeformation. It re- 
ceived their members as brethren, com- 
muned with them, and invited their minis- 
ters into its pulpits. 

In 1570 the statute of Elizabeth, c. 12, 
provided that ministers who had received 
ordination on ^^any other form of institu- 
tion, consecration or ordering, than that of 
the Church of England, should merely sub- 
scribe the Articles of Religion in order to 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 85 

hold ecclesiastical preferment in that 
Church/' Bishop Fleetwood, A.D. 1650, 
says in his works, p. 552, ^^We had many 
ministers from Scotland, France, and the 
Low Countries, who were ordained by pres- 
byters only, and not bishops, and they were 
instituted into benefices with cure, and yet 
were never re-ordained, but only subscribed 
the Articles." 

This course was justified by the positions 
taken by a large number of the most dis- 
tinguished and learned and influential of 
the archbishops and bishops and presby- 
ters of the Church of England. Bishop 
Hopkins, of Vermont, thus states their po- 
sition: *^A11 the reformers, together with 
Jewell, Andrews, Bramhall, Usher, and in 
a word, the whole of her standard divines, 
agree in maintaining that episcopacy is not 
necessary to the being, but only to the well- 
being of the Church, and, therefore, they 
grant the name of Churches to all denomin- 
ations of Christians who hold the funda- 
mentals of the gospel." As we have seen, 
they showed their views by their deeds. 

But subsequently the Church of England 
changed her course in this respect. Owing 
to the introduction of mediaeval and Eom- 
ish views, she has refused to acknowledge 
the sister Churches that have not the apos- 
tolic succession, and has had no fellowship 



86 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUKCH 

with them, thus denying by her acts a por- 
tion of the Creed which she acknowledges 
with her lips. The Protestant Episcopal 
Church of the United States, which owes its 
existence to her fostering care, has fol- 
lowed in her footsteps in this respect, and 
has a creed, which, in one of its articles, 
she both afhrms and denies. What a posi- 
tion for the Church of God! To say she 
believes and not carry out her belief! Is 
it not the duty of those of her children who 
perceive it, to call attention to it? 

We are glad to see in some directions an 
awakening to this truth. The Archbishop 
of Canterbury, who seems not only to hold 
the place of a leader, but to be a leader, has 
heard the cock crowing. We learn from 
an English source that having been invited 
to attend a meeting of the Presbyterian 
Church of Scotland, he has accepted the in- 
vitation. He has already spoken of various 
leaders of Dissenters as brethren, as have 
many English bishops, and now he goes 
among them to take counsel with them, to 
address them, and of course to hear what 
they have to say. Is not this to recognize 
them as Christians, and if so, as belonging 
to God's Church! 

We would like to have his ear to thank 
him for thus honoring his creed and ours. 
But this would not be the whole of our com- 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH 87 

munication. We would proceed to call his 
attention to the fact that when the broth- 
ers of Joseph, from whom he had been long 
separated, came to him from afar, he not 
only acknowledged them as brethren, but 
breaking the cords of Egyptian etiquette 
with which he was bound, as Samson broke 
the willow withes of the Philistines, he fell 
on their necks and kissed them, and then 
provided them with homes in the land of 
which he was the leader and governor. 
Shall a Christian leader fall below a Jewish 
leader? Shall a brother in Christ fall be- 
low a brother in the flesh! But we have 
not his ear, and so we turn to the American 
Protestant Episcopal Church. 

The Protestant Episcopal Church of the 
United States is the daughter of the Church 
of England, and like some other daughters 
has sometimes led the mother. At a great 
meeting held in the great central city of 
American commerce, the bishops of the 
Protestant Episcopal Church adopted a 
platform on which they invited all the 
Churches to come and unite and be one 
Church. The bishops of the mother Church 
heard and accepted the invitation, and now 
the *^ Chicago platform^' has become the 
' * Chicago -Lambeth platform. ' ' It consists 
of four articles, on three of which all the 
Churches can stand. The fourth article has 



88 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 

not yet been received on account of the in- 
terpretation generally put upon it, which 
we do not believe is according to the strict 
and literal and true meaning of the words. 
It reads thus : ' ' The historic episcopate lo- 
cally adapted in the methods of its adminis- 
tration to the varying needs of the nations 
and peoples called of God into the unity of 
His Church.'' 

Now do the words ^'the historic episco- 
pate convey the same idea as the words the 
apostolic succession ? ' ' We hold not. Apos- 
tolic succession, as held by the Church of 
Eome and a large number in the Church 
of England, means a tactual succession 
through the hands of the bishops from the 
hands of the apostles themselves, constitut- 
ing a channel of grace which gives divine 
power to those who receive it. But the 
words *^ historic episcopate'' do not contain 
this meaning, and if strictly interpreted 
embrace the episcopate of all Churches 
governed by bishops. For as all events 
which happen in the world belong to his- 
tory, all episcopates are historical. And 
so the Methodist and other Episcopal 
Churches which do not claim apostolic suc- 
cession have a historic episcopate. And in- 
asmuch as nearly all the Churches have 
officers at their head who perform the func- 
tions of bishops, all these churches have 



THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHUECH 89 

historic episcopates. While this may not be 
the meaning of those who framed the Chi- 
cago and Lambeth quadrilateral, it is the 
legitimate meaning of the words, and 
should be carried out by those who uttered 
them and all who hold them. 

But as Episcopalians generally — ^bish- 
ops, priests and deacons — do not take this 
view, they are, nevertheless, hound by the 
creed which they all have received, to re- 
ceive as Christians, and to help and com- 
mune with the Christian bodies around 
them, who are recognized as belonging to 
the Church of God, in these Creeds. 



CATHEDRALS AND THE CATHE- 
DRAL SYSTEM, IN THE LIGHT 
OF CHURCH HISTORY 

The cathedral system and the cathedrals, 
from which, as we believe, it originated, are 
a growth connected with the Christian 
Church, about which there exists a great 
difference of opinion. Some regard them 
as a development from a seed which the 
Heavenly Father planted, and so a bless- 
ing and benefit to Christianity. Others view 
them as having sprung from seeds brought 
from another source, which are like the 
mistletoe on the oak, that develops to the 
injury, and sometimes to the death, of the 
tree that bears it. These features of Chris- 
tianity were not brought to America by the 
earliest settlers. When members of the 
Church of England first crossed the Atlan- 
tic they brought to these shores their wor- 
ship, but left cathedrals and the cathedral 
system behind them. For long years they 
carried on their Church work and grew and 
expanded without this system. But of late 
Tears it has crossed the ocean, and is now 

90 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 91 

spreading itself in the dioceses of the Epis- 
copal Church, until there are but few in 
which it has not made its appearance. We 
hear on all sides of cathedrals being built 
or being projected. In many of our large 
cities leading Episcopalians have taken 
hold of the matter, and numbers advocate 
the building of cathedrals and the introduc- 
tion of the cathedral system in every city. 

If the system be an evil and the build- 
ings a hindrance, surely it should be known, 
that the nuisance may be abated before it 
has gotten possession of the whole episco- 
pal body ecclesiastic ; if it be an advantage, 
this should be made manifest, that all oppo- 
sition may cease and the good work be en- 
couraged. As the system has been in 
existence for more than a thousand years, 
and should in that time have been fully test- 
ed, there must be sufficient data to settle 
this great question; and so, to help in its 
solution, we propose to bring to view some 
of the facts recorded in Church history 
which throw light on the subject, and also 
to venture on some practical inferences, 
which may help to iucrease the light thus 
given. 

As the advocates of this system have, 
generally, great respect for antiquity, and 
often refer to it, we desire in the beginning 
to go back, for their benefit, to the earliest 



92 CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDKAL SYSTEM 

times. And so we notice that the system 
did not originate in the earliest ages of the 
Church. We learn from early records that 
for at least three hundred years the Chris- 
tians had no churches. In the times of the 
apostles, of the martyrs, and of the most 
holy and best men that Christianity has 
produced, Christians worshipped in any 
places where it was convenient to assemble. 
When the Jews permitted, they conducted 
their services in the synagogues. When 
these were not available they met in pri- 
vate houses, and when the sword of per- 
secution drove them into the wilderness, 
caves and mountain fastnesses, and some- 
times the last resting-places of the dead re- 
sounded with their songs of praise and the 
words of their preachers. The ordinances 
and services and ceremonies of their relig- 
ion — ^baptism, the Lord's Supper, marriage 
ceremonies, etc., were of course performed 
in the same places ; nor was there anything 
said in this early day of the need of a con- 
secrated building to give efficacy to the ser- 
vices and ceremonies of the Christian re- 
ligion. 

It will, perhaps, be said that all this was 
owing to the necessity of the case — to per- 
secution, to the distress of the times, and 
the poverty of the Christians, and is no 
argument against the building of fine 



CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDEAL SYSTEM 93 

churches and fine cathedrals, when the 
Christians possessed the means. Now, 
what we have said is not designed as an 
argument against the building of proper 
churches. But the facts referred to do 
teach this : that there is no need of grand 
churches or cathedrals to give efficacy to 
Christian services and ceremonies. There 
is no need of a ^'dim religious light,'' of 
^4ong-drawn aisles," of stately altars sur- 
rounded by bowing priests clad in gor- 
geous robes, with ceremonies like those in 
the Jewish temple, to move the hearts of 
men toward God and His beloved Son. 
For it was luithout these, and before they 
were used, that Christianity and all the 
services and ceremonies which had been in- 
stituted by the Divine founder had their 
greatest efficacy. 

But it is not enough to say that the use 
of the cathedrals did not increase the effi- 
cacy of Christian worship and services. 
Truth requires us to add, that in many 
ways it detracted from it, as we shall now 
proceed to show. Although churches had 
been built in a few places before the time 
of the great Emperor Constantine, it was 
not until his reign that they were erected 
and used to any extent. But soon after his 
conversion he made peace with the nations 
around, and began to use the treasures 



94 CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDKAL SYSTEM 

which had furnished the materials of war 
to put up magnificent buildings for Chris- 
tian worship. The historian Schaff gives 
the following account of these early cathe- 
drals : 

* ^ The period of church-building properly 
begins with Constantine the Great. After 
Christianity was acknowledged by the 
State, and empowered to hold property, it 
raised houses of worship in all parts of the 
Eoman Empire. There was probably more 
building of this kind in the fourth century 
than there has been in any period since 
Constantine and his mother Helena led the 
way. The Emperor adorned not only his 
residential city, but also the holy places 
in Palestine, and the African city Constan- 
tino, with basilicas, partly at his own ex- 
pense and partly from the public treasury. 
His successors on the throne, excepting 
Julian, as well as bishops and wealthy lay- 
men, vied with each other in building, beau- 
tifying and enriching churches.'' 

As we shall consider first the buildings 
connected with the cathedral system, it may 
be well, before proceeding further, to state 
what is meant by the term cathedral. 
Churches were so called when they con- 
tained a *' cathedra'' or throne on which 
the bishop sat when he was the rector or 
head of the church. In such churches there 



CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDEAL SYSTEM 95 

were generally a large number of clergy- 
men, and various attendants to carry out 
the plans and commands of the bishops. 
But the name was subsequently given to 
large churches which had similar organiza- 
tions without a bishop, whose place was 
supplied by a representative called a dean, 
or archdeacon. As nearly all the large 
churches of that day were of this descrip- 
tion, the term cathedral was virtually syn- 
onymous with church, and we shall there- 
fore use the word as applying to all the 
large and expensive churches. 

Now, what we wish to particularly em- 
phasize is the fact that, immediately pre- 
ceding the church-building era, a change 
took place in the character of the members 
of the church for the worse, and that this 
change influenced to a great extent the 
character of church edifices. 

It appears clearly from history that af- 
ter the Emperor Constantino embraced the 
Christian religion, and made it the religion 
of his empire, he also to a great extent 
moulded it, and made it conform to his own 
views. These views were not derived from 
the teachings of Christ and His Apostles. 
The historian Gibbon states, what is borne 
out by history, that Constantine 's religion 
was ^^more of the head than of the heart.'* 
After the great Emperor had acknowledged 



96 CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

the truth of the Bible he continued to be 
proud and revengeful and vain and world- 
ly, and showed all this as much in the 
Church as in the court and council. He at 
once began a work amongst the clergy 
which appeared as much in their conduct as 
in the churches which they took part in 
building. 

The historian Schaff brings this fact viv- 
idly to view. He says : ^ * To the spiritual 
prominence of the bishops was now added 
from the time of Constantine a civil im- 
portance. Through the union of the Church 
with the State the bishops became at the 
same time State officials of weight and en- 
joyed the various privileges which accrued 
to the Church from this connection. Their 
dioceses grew larger and their power and 
revenues increased. High-sounding titles 
were given to them, and tokens of rever- 
ence, such as kneeling, kissing of the hand, 
came to be shown to them by all classes, up 
to the Emperor himself.'' 

The great preacher Chrysostom, who 
lived about this time, says : ^ ^ The heads of 
the empire and the governors of provinces 
enjoy no such honor as the rulers of the 
Church. They are first at court, in the so- 
ciety of the ladies, and in the houses of the 
great. ' ' 

"We read again of these bishops : * * This 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 97 

very power and this temporal advantage of 
the Episcopate became also a lure for ava- 
rice and ambition, and a temptation to the 
lordly and secular spirit. There were met- 
ropolitans and patriarchs, especially in Al- 
exandria, Constantinople and Rome, who, 
while yet hardly past the age of persecu- 
tion, forgot the servant form of the Son of 
God and the poverty of His Apostles and 
martyrs, and rivalled the most exalted civil 
officials, nay, the Emperor himself, in 
worldly pomp and splendor. Not seldom 
were the most disgraceful intrigues em- 
ployed to gain the holy office. Such exam- 
ples could not but shed an evil influence on 
the lower clergy of the great cities. Jerome 
sketches a sarcastic description of the Ro- 
man priests, who squandered all their care 
on dress and perfumery, curled their hair 
with crisping pins, wore sparkling rings, 
paid far too great attention to women, and 
looked more like bridegrooms than like 
clergymen. Gregory Nazianzen, himself a 
bishop and for a long time patriarch of 
Constantinople, frequently mourns the am- 
bition, the official jealousy, and the luxury 
of the hierarchy, and utters the wish that 
the bishops might be distinguished only by 
a higher grade of virtue. ' ' 

This degeneration in the Christian 
Church was not of course confined to the 



98 CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

clergy. According to the scriptural saying, 
'^Like priest like people," the laity of the 
Church were apt imitators of their spirit- 
ual leaders. Mammon worship became the 
chief worship of so-called Christians, and 
luxury and pomp swallowed up the Chris- 
tian graces, as the lean kine of Pharaoh 
swallowed up the fat kine. 

Says the historian Schaff: ^'The num- 
ber of hypocrites and formal professors 
rapidly increased. Strict discipline, zeal, 
self-sacrifice and brotherly love proportion- 
ately ebbed away; and many heathen cus- 
toms and usages under altered names crept 
into the worship of God and the life of the 
Christian people." 

It was under this condition of things that 
church-building commenced in the Soman 
Empire. What kind of church-buildings 
would be expected under the circum- 
stances 1 Why, of course, such as the spirit 
and views of the builders demanded. As 
mammon and self-indulgence and luxury 
and love of show ruled the builders, these 
also decided the character of the church ed- 
ifices. ^^As if it was the business of the 
Church to supply the public with specimens 
of the fine arts, with interesting exhibi- 
tions, with fine music and other objects of 
interest to the wealthy and the artistic and 
the luxurious, she drew all the fine arts into 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 99 

her service and began her erections of 
Christian architecture, sculpture, painting, 
poetry and music; and everywhere stately 
churches and chapels, dedicated not only to 
Christ, but to the Virgin Mary, to the mar- 
tyrs and saints, arose in the land.'' These 
lordly edifices were at first constructed with 
some view to the preaching of the gospel, 
and were patterned after the Roman courts 
of justice ; hence the name basilica. But as 
the Christian cultus changed, the style of 
the buildings was changed, and soon the 
round, sepulchral buildings modified the 
basilican form, and produced what was 
called the Byzantine style, which consisted 
of a rotunda combined with a nave and 
transepts, better suited to a spectacular 
service and less suited to preaching. Then 
followed the Gothic form, with its lofty 
arches and stately pillars, still less adapted 
to that purpose, but suited to processions, 
celebrations of the mass, and other ceremo- 
nies, which now constituted Christian wor- 
ship. 

Says our historian again : ^ ^ The ideas of 
priesthood, sacrifice and altar, became more 
developed and more firmly fixed as the out- 
ward hierarchy grew, and the mass or daily 
repetition of the sacrifice of Christ by the 
hand of the priest became the mysterious 
centre of the whole system of worship. The 



100 CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDEAL SYSTEM 

number of festivals increased; processions 
and pilgrimages, and a multitude of signifi- 
cant and superstitious customs and cere- 
monies were introduced, until in the Nicene 
age we behold all the essential features of 
the sacerdotal, mysterious, ceremonial, 
symbolical cultus of the Greek and Roman 
churches of the present day." And thus 
we have church edifices and a cultus as well 
suited to each other as is the human body 
to its soul. 

From the early ages the work of building 
churches went on until magnificent cathed- 
rals adorned all the large cities of Europe, 
as well as those of the British Isles on its 
borders. 

Let us notice now, that at the time of the 
Reformation the building of this style of 
edifices ceased among the Protestants, and 
only such were erected as were adapted to 
the preaching of the gospel and the other 
exercises which Christ instituted and 
taught. This was a return to the style of 
buildings used by the Saviour and His 
Apostles, viz.: the synagogue buildings of 
the Jews, in which they could carry on their 
work, as they could not have done in the 
fine cathedrals of which we have been 
speaking. As the Church of England took 
a prominent part in the Reformation, and 
threw off and condemned the great cere- 



CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 101 

monial to which we have referred, she 
ceased to erect buildings of the mediaeval 
type and constructed only such as were 
adapted to the requirements of the gospel. 
But, it is argued next, that the cathedral 
is designed to take the place of the temple 
at Jerusalem, which the Saviour attended, 
and where He sometimes worshipped. This 
position was taken by many when the build- 
ing of churches commenced at the time of 
Constantino, and is thus referred to by the 
historian Schaff: ''The interior arrange- 
ment of the Christian churches in part imi- 
tated the temple at Jerusalem. In every 
large church there were three main divi- 
sions, which answered to the divisions of 
Solomon's temple." The impropriety of 
thus copying the temple arrangement is ap- 
parent from many considerations. First, 
the divisions around Solomon's temple 
were designed to separate the Jews from 
other nations, and also to keep up the dis- 
tinction between various classes. It was 
Christ's design to break down these walls 
of separation, ' ' that there might be neither 
Jew nor Greek, neither bond nor free, 
neither male nor female, but all should be 
one in Christ"; and so in this respect this 
arrangement was contrary to the teachings 
of the gospel. The division in the sacred 
house of the temple into the porch, the holy 



102 CATHEDBALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

place and the holy of holies, was also done 
away with, which was divinely proclaimed 
when the veil of separation in the temple 
was "rent in twain from the top to the 
bottom" at the time of Christ's crucifixion. 
In the Church of Christ there was to be 
no "holy of holies," for every part of it 
was alike holy. According to the teachings 
of the Divine One, wherever God was wor- 
shipped in spirit and in truth there He was 
present and the place was holy. Further, 
the cathedral was not a copy of the temple 
in respect to worship. For the Jews wor- 
shipped in an open court, where there was 
no dome to swallow up the voice and pre- 
vent it being heard, and no pillars to inter- 
cept the view and increase the reverbera- 
tion. And so the design to make the church 
a copy of the temple at Jerusalem was 
founded not on the rock of truth, but on 
the sands of error, and cannot stand the 
test of Holy Scripture. 

We pass on now to notice another plea 
made for the great church-buildings of 
which we have been speaking. As we have 
noticed, the Christian people used all the 
fine arts in the construction and furnishing 
of their religious edifices. Architecture, 
sculpture, painting, poetry became the 
handmaidens of religion and exhausted 
their skill in her service. "Was not this," 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 103 

it is asked, '^and is it not now, a proper use 
to make of these glorious arts ! Ought they 
not all to have been employed to make at- 
tractive the house of the Lord!" It is, we 
believe, because this question has not been 
properly answered that so many have been 
led to uphold the building and ornamenting 
the great churches and cathedrals of medi- 
aeval times, and the copying them in our 
times. The true answer is to be found in 
the effect which this course would have on 
the objects which the Saviour had in view, 
and upon the progress of His kingdom on 
earth. If He sent out His ministers to 
preach His gospel and to teach the people 
His doctrines, then the church edifices in 
which they assembled to hear and receive 
instruction should have been so constructed 
as to advance that purpose. If it was His 
aim that His ministers should be humble 
and lowly like Himself, and train the peo- 
ple to the same, then the churches should 
not have been constructed for display and 
pomp and show, which are destructive of 
these virtues. If He designed to teach His 
ministers, and set them an example, when 
He instituted the sacrament of the Lord's 
Supper on a table, then they should not 
have put aside the table and erected an 
altar in its place. If He designed that the 
thoughts and attention of the people should 



104 CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDEAL SYSTEM 

be fixed on the great Creator of all things, 
then the place of worship should not have 
been filled with pictures and statues and 
various symbols and curious mementoes, to 
draw their attention to other objects. 

As these were undoubtedly the objects 
and aims of the Saviour, these great 
churches and cathedrals of mediaeval times, 
which were so constructed as not to ad- 
vance, but rather to hinder them^ were out 
of place, and should not have been erected. 

But it is argued further that these great 
edifices were themselves sermons, and by 
their grandeur and beauty, as well as by 
the symbols on their pillars and arches, and 
by the pictures in their windows and on 
their domes and in their deep recesses, 
teach the grand lessons of the Christian re- 
ligion, lifting the heart to heaven and to 
God. This has been asserted by many 
great divines. In the history of certain of 
the English cathedrals this view is pre- 
sented, as the following quotation will 
show: ^^Our minsters and cathedral 
churches are at once poems and chronicles. 
However ignorant one may be of the spirit 
and technicalities of architecture, it is im- 
possible to stand in the shadow of these ma- 
jestic buildings without feeling that they 
embody an ideal of the human heart, an as- 
piration of human genius. Our minsters 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 105 

were no mere shelters for the assemblage 
of worshippers; they were themselves a 
form of worship, an embodiment of praise 
and prayer in materials less fugitive than 
the breath of psalm or antiphon. ' ^ Accord- 
ing to this view, cathedrals should be built 
that sermons may be continually presented 
to the eyes of the sons and daughters of 
men. But facts indicate that these sermons 
are either corrupt in their tendency or are 
like the sermons of preachers spoken in an 
unknown tongue, which St. Paul has com- 
manded not to be used. It appears clearly 
from the records of the churches that the 
cathedrals have been the centres of corrup- 
tion of the Christian world, and have rather 
aided in the propagation of error than of 
truth. 

This is shown first by the lives of the 
great heads of the Church of Eome, 
brought up under the shadows of the cathe- 
drals. Edgar tells us, in his Variations of 
Popery, ^^A person desirous of painting 
scenes of atrocity and filth might in the 
history of the popedom find ample material 
for gratification. A mass of moral impur- 
ity might be collected from the Eoman 
hierarchy sufficient to crowd the pages of 
folios and glut all the demons of pollution 
and malevolence.'' Baronius, in his annals 
of the tenth century, seems to labor for 



106 CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

language to express the base degeneracy of 
the popes and the frightful deformity of 
the popedom. The cardinals, brought up in 
the same atmosphere, with the cathedrals 
ever before them, were no improvement on 
the popes, but entered fully into their im- 
moralities, corrupt politics and corrupt re- 
ligious views. Indeed, the popes were only 
cardinals fully fledged, with a new degree 
conferred. 

The lower clergy — the bishops, priests 
and deacons — were, with of course some ex- 
ceptions, no better than their superiors, 
and the laity, like water which cannot rise 
above its source, were on a level with the 
teachers and priests who were over them. 
The use of indulgences will show the st^de 
of their religion. The popes issued per- 
mits to commit sin. The cardinals, bish- 
ops and priests sold them, and the mem- 
bers of the church bought them. By this 
means money was secured to build St. 
Peter's church at Rome. Many other 
cathedrals were built in a similar man- 
ner. Many of the works of the Church 
were carried on by means procured by 
licensing men and women to commit sin. 
What kind of sermons did the cathedrals 
preach, under whose teachings such acts 
were committed? The edifices were them- 
selves incitements to commit sin. With 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 107 

their surrounding cliapels and buildings 
they formed a meeting-point for the cor- 
rupt leaders of the Roman Church to form- 
ulate their corrupt schemes and take meas- 
ures for their realization, and they con- 
stituted the theatres in which the corrupt 
ceremonial, which elbowed out of doors the 
simple services and worship which the 
Saviour taught and practised, was carried 
on. Viewing the subject practically, we do 
not see that these great Christian cathe- 
drals preached any better — we might say 
any other — sermons than the beautiful Gre- 
cian temples, in which idolatry and immo- 
rality were openly proclaimed and formed 
part of the worship. And so the contention 
that these cathedrals are valuable as ' ' ser- 
mons in stone, ' ' to teach the people some of 
the great truths of the Christian religion, 
is contradicted by sad and stubborn facts. 
But it may be argued that these evils 
were not in any way connected with these 
cathedrals, and that under a pure form of 
religion they certainly do impress people 
with the grandeur and the power and maj- 
esty of Him to whom they are dedicated. 
We reply to this, that these edifices were 
poor teachers of God's greatness. The best 
way to teach men the grandeur and power 
and majesty of God is to lead them out of 
the temples made by men into the great 



108 CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

temple of the universe, constructed by the 
Deity himself. The lofty mountain, point- 
ing upwards, is more powerful to lift the 
soul to God than the puny steeple of the 
greatest cathedral. The grand ocean, 
stretching beyond the reach of human eye, 
tells more of the grandeur of its Maker 
than the grand nave of the cathedral, 650 
feet long and 400 feet wide! The voice of 
the grand waterfall, made up of the waters 
of many mighty lakes, clad in its robe of 
foam and mist, is surely more impressive 
than the song of a choir of fifty boys ar- 
rayed in cassocks and cottas. We believe it 
was because the builders of the temple of 
Jerusalem appreciated these facts that they 
arranged to have the place of worship in 
the open air, under the canopy of heaven, 
with the mountains full in view, and the 
great luminary of the skies irradiating the 
scene, and dispelling that delight of the 
builders of cathedrals, ^'a dim religious 
light.'' 

In the great cathedral of St. Paul, in Lon- 
don, there are monuments to many of the 
great generals and statesmen of England, 
but there is none to the distinguished archi- 
tect who designed and built it. But instead, 
there is an inscription in a prominent place, 
^'Si monumentum quaris, curcumspice/' 
In truth, the building is the monument of 



CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 109 

its constructor. Visitors to this great ca- 
thedral cannot but admire the genius of the 
man who planned and superintended the 
mighty building. And the thought of those 
who visit the place is more about Wren the 
architect than of the God to whom it is 
dedicated. And the sermon in stone is more 
of the greatness of man than of God. In- 
deed, all the great cathedrals are monu- 
ments to those who built them, and, like the 
painted windows, tell of kings and queens 
and rich citizens, many of whom were noted 
for their sinful careers. 

In view of all these facts, we think there 
is no ground for speaking of the cathedrals 
as blessings and benefits because they are 
* ^ sermons in stone. ' ' The truth is, the les- 
sons given by church edifices depend almost 
entirely upon association. "When the build- 
ing is associated with deeds of benevolence, 
with acts of godliness and holiness; when 
they remind of saintly and religious men 
and women who worshipped there and 
faithfully served the Lord there^ they will 
bring the good deeds of these good people 
before the minds of the attendants and 
preach to them gospel sermons. And these 
sermons will be irrespective of the charac- 
ter and appearance of the buildings. Be 
they of stone or of wood, be they of grand 
or humble proportions, be they ornamented 



110 CATHEDEAI.S AND CATHEDKAL SYSTEM 

or plain, it will be the same. All the effect 
will depend on the association. We know 
that God has most frequently honored by 
his presence the honse of the humble and 
the lowly. And many of the poorest struc- 
tures in Christendom have been like the 
tree where Jacob slept when God visited 
him, so that he said when he awakened, 
^ ' Surely God is in this place and I knew it 
not." 

But there is another evil connected with 
these great church-buildings, to which we 
must now turn, which is of gigantic dimen- 
sions. We allude to the financial evil. Be- 
fore the time of the Emperor Constantino 
the great object of the Christian people was 
to propagate their religion, and, as far as 
they could, take care of their fellow-Chris- 
tians. The call for a missionary to go to an 
open field, or for help for suffering breth- 
ren, was an ' ' open sesame ' ' to every Chris- 
tian purse. But at the time of Constantino 
and after, the money must, as the general 
rule, be used in the building and ornament- 
ing of churches. Constantino set the ex- 
ample of appropriating the bulk of his of- 
ferings to this purpose. The rich and great 
followed the fashion thus set by the king, 
and the poor widow must cast her mite into 
the same chest, though it were ''all the liv- 
ing she had. ' ^ We do not denv that it was 



CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDKAL SYSTEM 11 1 

a right and proper thing to build suitable 
churches for Christian worship. But were 
these great edifices, adapted chiefly for 
spectacular exhibitions, suitable buildings 
for this purpose? And must the large part 
of what the Christians had to give be de- 
voted to that object! Is the gathering of 
stones of granite and marble of more im- 
portance than the gathering of living 
stones of flesh and spirit? Is the erecting 
of the material temple, which is to crumble 
in a few years, of greater moment than the 
building of the spiritual temple, which is to 
last forever? So it seems to have been con- 
sidered in these early times. For long ago 
the principal part of the money of the 
Church was expended on the churches. The 
historian Mosheim tells us ^'that in the 
sixth century the number of temples 
erected in memory and to the honor of the 
saints was immense, both in the East and in 
the West. There had long been enough 
houses of worship to accommodate this 
people, but this age courted the saints, by 
offering them these edifices as a kind of 
present, to secure the good offices of these 
departed Christians in the kingdom of 
heaven. ' ' 

The cost of all these churches and cathe- 
drals, great and small, was innnense. The 
Church of St. Sophia, in Constantinople, 



112 CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDRAl. SYSTEM 

built by the Emperor Constantine, and af- 
terwards rebuilt by one of his successors, 
the Emperor Justinian, cost many millions 
of dollars. Many others of the great church 
edifices passed the million point. The 
Church of St. Peter's, at Eome, could not 
have cost less in the time of Constantine; 
and on the present structure, built by Leo 
the Great, it is estimated that not less than 
fifty millions of dollars were expended. In 
all the countries of Europe the same lavish 
expenditures were made for these build- 
ings, unsuited to the worship of God, and 
fit only for ceremonies and displays which 
do not promote the spirit of true religion. 
But this is not all. Large sums were also 
spent on the embellishment and ornamenta- 
tion of these edifices. From time to time 
costly gifts were added, and magnificent 
works of art were presented by wealthy 
professors of religion to the different 
churches. In St. Peter's church the multi- 
tudes of costly ornaments filled the eye of 
the beholder and occupied his attention. 
Altars and tombs, statues, pictures, gilt 
and stucco, bronzes, stained glass, granite 
and porphyry, marble and alabaster, and 
other materials and combinations of ma- 
terials in multiform colors and shades were 
added to the work of the architect to give 
dignity and splendor and to overwhelm the 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDEAL SYSTEM 113 

beholder with astonishment and awe, and 
draw the thoughts from God and His wor- 
ship. But on all the great churches of the 
great cities gifts of a similar character 
were being continually lavished by the 
wealthy and powerful, the cost of which, 
added to the amounts expended on the 
buildings, made a huge sum which almost 
passes belief. 

Now, we think we may safely say that 
less than one-tenth of this money would 
have been sufficient to supply all the 
churches needed for Christian purposes. 
We draw this inference from facts, one of 
which we will present. The great cathedral 
of St. Paul, in London, was built at a cost 
of nearly four millions of dollars. While 
it is said 20,000 people could find standing 
room within its walls, it is estimated that, 
using all the available space, not more than 
10,000 could be seated. There are provided 
seats for 4,000. Of this number only about 
one-half can hear the words of the preacher 
who addresses them. The church or taber- 
nacle of Mr. Spurgeon, in the same city, 
cost about $150,000, and is capable of seat- 
ing comfortably 5,500 people, all of whom 
can hear distinctly all that is said. It ap- 
pears from these data that if all the seats 
of each church were filled, the expenditure 
made to seat each person would be — in St. 



114 CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

PauPs church about $1,000, in Mr. Spur- 
geon's, $30. But this is not all. The 
church of Mr. Spurgeon is always well filled 
with listeners, whose attention is not dis- 
tracted by the reverberation, which makes 
the hearing in St. Paul's so difficult that it 
is like doing penance to listen to a sermon. 
And so we are not surprised that the at- 
tendance in this great and beautiful ca- 
thedral is small and consists principally of 
strangers and sight-seers, although the 
London Times and other papers have re- 
ferred to the fact as an '^ unsolved prob- 
lem.' ' 

What is true of this great cathedral is 
true of most of the others which are to be 
found in many of the large cities of Eng- 
land, and what has been said of Mr. Spur- 
geon 's tabernacle may also be said of a 
large number of the Protestant churches 
in England and America. It appears, 
therefore, that from a financial point of 
view these cathedrals are as great an evil 
as in the respects already considered. As 
money is necessary in order to carry on the 
work of building up Christ's kingdom, in 
order to send out missionaries and sup- 
port them in their fields of labor, these ca- 
thedrals, which have swallowed up the 
Church's means, have been in the way of 
the Church's work. This is proved most 



CATHEDKALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 115 

conclusively in the history of the Church 
in mediaeval times. For as soon as the 
building of these great edifices commenced, 
the Christian Church ceased to a great 
extent its missionary work and spent its 
strength and its means on the material tem- 
ples. 

While some might plead as an excuse for 
this course in mediaeval times (poor excuse 
we think even then) that fountains of gold 
and silver had been opened in thrones and 
public coffers for this purpose, which 
would otherwise have been sealed up, and 
that kings and bishops had led rich men 
and women to the Church treasuries to re- 
plenish them with their stores in order to 
gratify a taste for the beautiful, and also 
to aid in the support of the clergy who fur- 
nished the beautiful shows, there are no 
such sources of supply in our day and coun- 
try. All the money must come, not from 
kings or the public purse, but from the 
members of the Church, rich and poor. 
And now, while Ethiopia is stretching out 
her hands, and the Macedonian cry, ^ ' Come 
over and help us,'' is borne to our ears 
from China and Japan, and India and 
South America, and the islands of the sea, 
no help can be given because the cathedrals 
and fine churches, like the two daughters 
of the horse leech, cry ^^give, give," and 



116 CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDEAL SYSTEM 

the rich and powerful can hear only their 
voice. 

In our own land at least two-thirds of 
our clergy are carrying on their work 
among poor congregations at almost the 
starving point, while millions are called for 
and are being given to build cathedrals and 
adorn them with beautiful stained-glass 
windows, many of them mementoes to god- 
less men and women, and magnificent al- 
tars and pictures, often consecrated with 
a gorgeous ceremonial not taught or sanc- 
tioned in the Bible. As we hear the calls 
for money to build and ornament these 
great cathedrals, and look upon the sad 
condition of our domestic and foreign mis- 
sion fields, we cannot but exclaim in the 
words of the great orator of Rome, ''0 
temporal mores!" 

But the plea is made in favor of the fine 
cathedrals, that as we have fine houses for 
ourselves, we should build fine ones for the 
Lord, as David desired to do, when he said, 
^'See, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the 
ark of God dwelleth in curtains." But this 
does not require that we should build 
churches not adapted to carry out the 
Saviour ^s work. For fine buildings can 
be constructed of the proper kind. But the 
Lord's answer to David rebukes the use of 
large expenditure for such a purpose when 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 117 

money is needed for suffering humanity. 
God said, ''Spake I a word with any of the 
tribes of Israel whom I commanded to feed 
my people, saying, why build ye me not a 
house of cedar r' The Lord here requires 
the tribes to feed the people before He 
asks them to build a temple for Himself, 
and teaches that the first duty of man is 
to care for the wants, spiritual as well as 
temporal, of His people. 

But we turn now from the cathedrals to 
the cathedral system which belongs to them 
and goes with them. 

In each large church there were many 
workers and attendants who carried on the 
work, such as it was. When there was a 
bishop, he of course sat on the throne and 
ruled. When there was none, his place was 
supplied by a deputy, called "archpresby- 
ter,'' or archdeacon, or "dean," who gov- 
erned in his place. Under these rulers there 
were subordinate officers, as in an army, 
to render the organization effective. This 
arrangement is what is known as the "ca- 
thedral system.'^ The number of officials 
and attendants who constituted the organi- 
zation was not fixed, but frequently it was 
very great. In the great cathedral in Con- 
stantinople in the time of Justinian, we 
are informed there were 60 presbyters, 100 
deacons, 40 deaconesses, 90 subdeacons, 100 



118 CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

readers, 25 cantors — in all 415. Over 
these were various officers, so that there 
was ' ^ rank above rank, " as in the court of 
a king. In the West the number in the ca- 
thedral chapter was not so great, though 
each had a great many members. Thus we 
see laid in the cathedrals the foundation 
of the Eoman hierarchy. 

And now it will perhaps be asked what 
could have occupied the time and given em- 
ployment to all these officials I It was not, 
we reply, missionary work in the country, 
for this work was carried on by the country 
clergy, of whom there were a large number. 
Nor was it missionary work in foreign 
fields, for if so, the workers could not have 
been in the cathedrals. Nor was it among 
the outsiders in the cities, for the number 
of cathedrals and religious workers in the 
cathedrals was far greater than that need 
demanded. The work was in the cathe- 
drals themselves. It consisted in the ob- 
servance of saints' days, of which there 
were a very large number ; in the perform- 
ance of mass, often several times a day; in 
the work of liberating the departed from 
purgatory; in the consecrating oil and wa- 
ter for religious purposes; in the conse- 
crating of pictures, stained-glass windows, 
and many other things for sacred uses ; in 
hearing confessions and giving absolution ; 



CATHEDRALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 119 

and in collecting money for getting the sin- 
ful dead out of purgatory. 

In these different ways, which required 
the offices of a great number of officials, 
were the priests and their assistants in the 
Eomish cathedrals occupied. 

Of course all this cannot be said of the 
cathedral system of England. For the 
Church of England has condemned and 
given up these superstitions and unscrip- 
tural observances. But still all the cathe- 
drals of the English Church have their 
chapters, consisting of a number of clergy- 
men and other attendants who assist the 
clergymen. Now, it is on account of this 
fact that many are in favor of cathedrals. 
'^We need,'' they say, ^^a body of clergy 
to carry on the work of missions under the 
bishops.'' This idea was taken up by 
Bishop Whitehouse, of Illinois, about the 
year 1850 and was presented to the diocese 
of that State in a charge. But it met with 
violent opposition from many quarters, as 
contrary to the genius of the Episcopal 
Church, and of the civil government in the 
United States, and was abandoned by its 
advocates. But it is now revived and finds 
advocates, as we have said, in all parts of 
the country. While we believe the argu- 
ments then used against it are sound and 
convincing, there are other considerations 



120 CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 

which may be urged against the system, 
which we now would present. 

We find in the Bible that the pastoral 
ofQce of the minister or presbyter is as 
important as that of preaching. The Apos- 
tles visited from house to house, made the 
acquaintance of each member of the flock, 
and adapted his teaching to his especial 
need. The presbyters were called on to do 
the same. How else could they follow their 
Master, who '^knew his own sheep by 
name," and ^4ed them out, and they knew 
his voice"? Now, this cannot be done un- 
der the cathedral system. For the minis- 
ters have no especial flock, but go around 
from place to place, as the bishop sends 
them — now to this congregation, then to 
that — and thus one of the most important 
duties of the minister cannot be performed. 

In the next place, the ministers are put 
under the authority of rulers who direct 
theni in all their duties, and, in addition to 
this, often rule over their opinions, and 
thus destroy that liberty which was given 
by the Saviour when he said, ^ ' Call no man 
master, for one is your master, even 
Christ." The evil of this was plainly ex- 
hibited in the Eomish Church, where the 
rulers were often developed into tyrants, 
and the lower clergy became full of the 
spirit of slaves. There can be no greater 



CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 121 

injury to the Christian character than this, 
and no greater hindrance to the spread of 
Christ's religion. But this is done by the 
cathedral system. Moreover, this arrange- 
ment is destructive of the fields for the 
clergy not connected with cathedrals. For 
around the cathedrals the fields are all to 
be worked by the clergy of the cathedrals. 

Further, how can this chapter of the 
clergy be supported 1 It cannot well be by 
the contributions of the flocks; for the 
members of the church, not feeling that 
they have any particular pastor, will not 
make any large contributions for this pur- 
pose, j^d so there must be an endowment. 
This requires an immense sum of money, 
which, if it can be collected, is such a drain 
on the churches' funds that nothing re- 
mains for other purposes, and so the mis- 
sion work must cease, as the history of the 
Church fully shows. 

Then this system is not the best for 
church-worJc. This is demonstrated by 
many examples. Take, for instance, the 
churches already referred to. Mr. Spur- 
geon's tabernacle does a work greater and 
more varied than any cathedral in Eng- 
land. It has connected with it numerous 
agencies — missionary, philanthropic and 
educational. Its orphanage supports near- 
ly 500 boys and girls. It has its pas- 



122 CATHEBEALS AND CATHEDtlAl. SYSTEM 

tors' college to aid young men who desire 
to enter the ministry. It has its almshouse 
and day school, and carries on colportage 
in various destitute parts of England, be- 
sides helping the foreign mission fields to 
a great extent. If you ask now, who car- 
ries on this great work? we reply, the con- 
gregation. The members of this church 
supply the labor, as well as the money 
which is needed to carry forward this great 
gospel chariot, and are true priests of God, 

Compare this with the work done in St. 
Paul 's cathedral. As far as we can gather 
from the accounts given of this great 
church, its principal work is carrying on 
the various services in the cathedral, and 
the conduct of several schools of boys and 
girls. What a preponderance there is in 
favor of Spurgeon's tabernacle! We have 
selected these two great churches because 
the statistics and accounts given of them 
are more full and complete than of any 
others we have seen. 

But many churches in America, such as 
Dr. Hairs, Presbyterian, of New York; St. 
George's, St. Bartholomew's, Holy Trinity, 
Protestant Episcopal, of the same city; 
Trinity church. Episcopal, and Dr. Gor- 
don's, Baptist, of Boston, and multitudes 
of others, are as active and liberal and be- 
nevolent as Mr. Spurgeon's tabernacle, and 



CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDRAL SYSTEM 123 

far surpass in these respects any of the 
cathedrals of which we have heard in Eng- 
land or America. 

When the great general and statesman 
Cromwell ruled in England, he found in one 
of the large cathedrals a number of silver 
images of the Apostles. He caused them 
to be taken out and melted into coins, say- 
ing, ^'Let them go about doing good, like 
the Apostles they have represented.'' If 
these cathedrals could be treated in the 
same way, what a blessing would result to 
the Christian cause ! They would open the 
doors now closed to many a missionary, 
they would create channels for the water 
of life to flow in the now desert regions of 
heathendom, and "the wilderness and the 
solitary place would be glad for them ' ' and 
would be made "to blossom as the rose." 

In view of these and the other facts which 
the history of the past ages present, we 
must believe that cathedrals and the cathe- 
dral system have had a large part in hin- 
dering the spread of the gospel, and in help- 
ing in the spread of evil and error in the 
Christian Church. 

In view of these facts, thus made patent 
by the testimony of more than a thousand 
years, will not the members of the Prot- 
estant Episcopal Church — the bishops, the 
clergy, the laity — pause and think before 



124 CATHEDEALS AND CATHEDEAL SYSTEM 

they adopt and help to develop a style of 
churches and a system connected with them 
which was partly instrumental in binding 
Christ's Church in a bondage under which 
it groaned and languished for fifteen cen- 
turies ? 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE IN ITS 
RELATION TO CHURCH UNITY 

The subject of the Episcopate, as held 
by the Anglican Chnrch and the Protestant 
Episcopal Church of America, has come 
into great prominence since the construc- 
tion by the bishops of these Churches of 
a platform for the unification of Christen- 
dom, and the invitation by them to all the 
denominations of Christians to come and 
stand upon it and be one. The platform 
consists of four planks, which it is con- 
tended is a sufficient doctrinal basis for the 
Church of Christ. What is a little singu- 
lar, however, is that some of the denomina- 
tions, which have many more planks in 
their own religious platforms, would be 
better satisfied to have fewer in this. They 
would prefer to have the last plank left out, 
and might then take the step, and stand on 
a platform of three planks for the sake of 
Christian unity. But those who have con- 
structed the platform aver that this can- 
not be done ; that the last plank cannot be 
dispensed with; that it is as important as 

125 



126 THE HISTOEIC EPISCOPATE 

were the two pillars to the temple of the 
Philistines, which, when Samson pulled 
them down, fell to pieces. 

The plank referred to is the Historic 
Episcopate, including, of course, apostolic 
succession, which is an essential part of it. 
This, though considered by many the most 
important element, is modestly placed by 
the bishops in the same rank with the Holy 
Scriptures, the Apostles' and Nicene 
Creeds, and the sacraments of Baptism and 
the Lord's Supper, in the ''Lambeth and 
Chicago Quadrilateral, ' ' as the platform is 
sometimes called. 

Of course, if this contention be just; if 
this article be even of no higher rank than 
the others, it not only cannot be left out, 
but cannot be suspended , or even mini- 
mized. Now, as we all know, this is not ad- 
mitted by the non-Episcopal Churches. 
And so, before the different bodies of 
Christians can be brought on the same plat- 
form, one or the other of two results must 
follow. Either the Episcopalians must be 
convinced that the Historic Episcopate is 
not essential to a Christian Church, or the 
non-Episcopalians must be convinced that 
it is. In saying this we do not mean that 
nothing else is required in order to bring 
the Christian Churches together. 

It is the aim of this paper to present 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 127 

some thoughts to the general public, with 
the view of helping towards the solution of 
this great problem; and to Episcopalians 
especially, because, as they have taken the 
initiative in the matter, it becomes them to 
be especially careful that the platform to 
which they invite their brethren should 
consist of planks made from timber of 
heavenly growth, and that each plank 
should occupy the position claimed for it, 
which should be made plain by Holy Scrip- 
ture. 

1. The first thing to be done is to get at 
the idea presented in this fourth proposi- 
tion, which reads as follows : 

' ' The Historic Episcopate, locally adapt- 
ed in the methods of its administration to 
the varying needs of the nations and peo- 
ples called of God into the unity of His 
Church." 

It may be said that every episcopate is 
historic; for every event which can be re- 
corded in history is a part of history, and 
in that sense is historic. The Methodists, 
not to mention other Christian bodies, have 
a claim to a Historic Episcopate. It is 
necessary, therefore, to say that the word 
historic, as used in this platform, means 
an episcopate which commenced at the time 
of the Apostles, and has been handed down 
by tactual succession to the bishops of the 



128 THE HISTOEIC EPISCOPATE 

present time. This is what is generally 
known as ^^ apostolic succession." 

But here a difficulty arises; for the 
phrase ^^ apostolic succession" is used in 
two different senses. It is used first to sim- 
ply indicate that, as a matter of historical 
fact, there has been an uninterrupted suc- 
cession of bishops in the Christian Church, 
from the apostolic times to the present day. 
And, secondly, it stands for the doctrine, 
founded on this belief, that without this 
succession there could be no real ministry, 
nor any valid sacraments within the 
Church, nor any true Christian graces. In 
other words, the apostolic ministry is the 
channel of Christian grace, Christian gov- 
ernment, and Christian power. As a large 
number of Episcopalians hold to this view, 
and as it is a startling position in this nine- 
teenth century, where many large and 
learned and powerful Christian organiza- 
tions do not hold it, we shall take it up, as 
demanding our consideration in the first 
place. 

It is evident that if this view be correct, 
the Protestant denominations outside the 
Episcopal Church have not a valid minis- 
try, and their organizations cannot be 
called Christian Churches. If they be not 
churches, they are not within the covenant 
of Christ, and so are left to the uncoven- 



THE HISTOEIC EPISCOPATE 129 

anted mercies of God, whatever these may- 
be. Although this conclusion follows legit- 
imately from the premises, it is not held by 
a large number of Episcopalians. Many 
bishops and clergymen and laymen are 
charitably illogical and while they hold that 
the Historic Episcopate is essential to a 
Christian Church, yet hold that the Prot- 
estant denominations who do not have it 
are in the Church. 

It is to be observed that this position re- 
futes the arguments of those who hold to 
the exclusive validity of the Historic Epis- 
copate, and the ministry connected with it, 
and leaves the denominations around to 
rest contented with a ministry which can 
lead men to heaven, and to organizations 
which form a part of the Church of Christ. 

We desire now to come to the relief of 
these Episcopal brethren, and to show that 
their charity is more logical than their ar- 
gum.ents. We hold that their contention as 
to the non-Episcopal Churches is errone- 
ous, for the following reasons : 

First, it is the teaching of Holy Scripture 
that the truths essential to the Christian 
religion, and so those which lead into 
Christ's Church, can be found by all who 
seek them. This is directly asserted by the 
great Saviour Himself. He said to the 
multitudes who thronged around Him: 



130 THE HISTOKIC EPISCOPATE 

^' Ask and ye shall receive, seek and ye shall 
find, knock and it shall be opened unto 
you." That these words were designed for 
the people of all ages will not be denied, 
and they are quoted now and have always 
been quoted in this sense. That they refer 
to entering the Christian Church is also 
generally admitted. Now, if these words 
be true, can it be believed that the multi- 
tudes who are embraced in the non-Episco- 
pal denominations of the Protestant world 
are outside of Christ's Church^ They have 
sought to find and enter it; they have 
showed their earnestness and sincerity by 
their labors, by their sacrifices of various 
kinds, and sometimes by their deaths ; and 
to say that they have not found and en- 
tered it is equivalent to saying, that the 
plain and clear promises of the Saviour 
have not been fulfilled. As no member of 
the Episcopal Church would venture to say 
this, so he should not venture to assert its 
equivalent — that the non-Episcopal denom- 
inations are not Churches. 

2. There is another test given by Christ 
which does not favor the exclusive view of 
the Church, which belongs to this doctrine 
of apostolic succession. Christ gave it to 
His immediate disciples to try those who 
professed to belong to His kingdom or 
Church. He does not say, ye shall know 



THE HISTOKIC EPISCOPATE 131 

them by the sign of apostolic succession; 
but by their fruits ye shall know them. St. 
Paul tells us what the fruits referred to 
are in his Epistle to the Galatians, v., 22 : 
^^The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, 
long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
meekness, temperance." If men who pro- 
fess to belong to the Church of Christ 
possess all these Christian graces, do not 
Christ's words require that we should re- 
gard them as members of His kingdom? 

Another test is given by Christ in His 
sermon on the mount. He told the multi- 
tudes who came to Him that there were 
two ways which men in their lives were 
travelling. The one was the broad way, 
which led to death; the other the narrow 
way, which led to life. All were travelling 
on the one or the other of these ways. Now, 
as Christ established His Church to in- 
clude those who were walking in the nar- 
row ivay, or the way of life, is it to be sup- 
posed that those who accept Christ's teach- 
ing of the narrow way and seek to enter 
on it should not be able to find the way 
into the Church which He established to 
include and hold them ? Christ is presented 
as the gate of the narrow way. He is also 
the door of the Church. And are not all 
who enter by the gate into the way also in 
the Church? And so, to acknowledge that 



132 THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 

men are walking in the narrow way of life, 
having entered thereon by the gate pointed 
out to them, and used the various rites re- 
quired, as far as they could discover, seems 
to be an admission that they are m, and 
form a part of, the Church which Christ 
founded. 

But there is another line of argument 
which goes to disprove the view of apostolic 
succession which we are now considering. 
It is derived from the definitions and de- 
scriptions of the Christian Church given in 
the New Testament. In the First Epistle 
to the Corinthians, twelfth chapter and 
twenty- seventh verse, St. Paul says to the 
Christian disciples : ' ^ Now ye are the body 
of Christ, and members in particular, ' ' He 
means, of course, all true Christian people. 
And as the body of Christ meant His 
Church, it follows that all are members of 
that Church who form a part of His body. 
As it is admitted that the members of de- 
nominations who have not this apostolic 
succession are members of His body, it fol- 
lows that they belong to Christ ^s Church. 
The same view is presented in Ephesians 
i., 23, where the Church is spoken of again 
as Christ's body, so that every one who is 
a part of His body is a part of the Church; 
and if members of the various Protestant 
bodies occupy this relation to Christ, they 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 133 

must belong to His Church. In the same 
Epistle, chapter ii., 22, the Christian 
Church is presented in the figure of a tem- 
ple, of which Christians are the stones. All 
who are disciples, or members of Christ, 
are stones in the temple, and if so are mem- 
bers of His Church. 

But let us now leave the ministry in its 
connection with the Church, and consider 
it in itself alone, and we shall see that the 
High-Church theory which we have been 
considering cannot be maintained. 

There comes before us first the vital 
question, For what purpose did Christ in- 
stitute the ministry and send out bishops 
and other ministers into the world! We 
find an answer first in Christ's own words 
of commission to the apostles: ^^Go ye, 
therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing 
them in the name of the Father and of the 
Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them 
to observe all things whatsoever I have 
commanded you ; and lo I am with you al- 
way, even to the end of the world.'' This 
commission of the Saviour to His apostles 
includes three particulars : 1, The universal 
publication of the gospel ; 2, The baptizing 
those who should embrace it ; and 3, The in- 
struction in its doctrines and precepts. 

It is to be observed that the baptizing 
was to take place, in the case of adults, 



134 THE HISTOBIC EPISCOPATE 

after they had been instructed in religions 
truth, and had become converts to the king- 
dom of Christ. It was done to make them 
formally what they already were actually. 
It was illustrated in the case of the apostles 
themselves ; then in the cases of Cornelius 
the centurion and those who had been col- 
lected by him to listen to the preaching of 
Peter, and of the multitudes converted 
through the preaching of Peter on the day 
of Pentecost. 

As to children, they were to be received 
into the Church for the same reason the 
Jewish children were received into the old 
covenant — that they might be brought up 
in the faith of Abraham. The Lord said of 
Abraham : ^ ' I know him, that he will com- 
mand his children and his household after 
him, and they shall keep the way of the 
Lord. ' ' The instruction being thus the im- 
portant matter. 

Further, we notice that before the giving 
of His commission, Christ had intrusted to 
the apostles the government of His Church. 
This appears in His conversation with 
Peter, in which he says: *^I will give unto 
thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. 
Whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall 
be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou 
shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in 
heaven." (Matt, xvi., 19.) And again to 



THE HISTOKIC EPISCOPATE 135 

the apostles generally: ^^ Whatsoever ye 
shall bind on earth shall be bound in 
heaven, and whatsoever ye shall loose on 
earth shall be loosed in heaven." The 
Saviour had also instructed His apostles to 
teach the people by their lives and conduct. 
This appears in His words, ^'Let your light 
so shine before men that they may see your 
good works and glorify your Father which 
is in heaven." 

Such were the plain and simple instruc- 
tions given by the Saviour to His apostles 
for their guidance after He should leave 
them, and also for the guidance of those 
who were to follow them. This appears 
plainly from the Epistles of St. Paul to 
Titus and Timothy, whom he had conse- 
crated bishops in the Church. We find in 
these letters only repetitions and expan- 
sions of the Saviour's teachings. The in- 
struction of disciples by word and example, 
and the governing of the Church by re- 
ceiving converts, and disciplining and ex- 
cluding offenders, and the administration 
of the sacraments, were the duties of their 
office. 

Now, how can there be drawn out of these 
simple and plain teachings the doctrines 
that the apostolic ministry is the channel of 
divine grace and divine power through the 
rites of consecration and ordination and 



136 THE HISTOEIC EPISCOPATE 

ahsoluflon and the administration of the 
sacraments, and that the performance of 
these ceremonies is the great office and 
duty of the Christian ministry f We make 
bold to say, that such doctrines not only do 
not follow from Christ's teachings, but 
contradict them. And in proof we point 
to the fact that oftentimes when they have 
been fully received and carried out, the 
Christian religion has declined and often 
died, as we see in the case of the whole 
Christian body at the time of the Reforma- 
tion and also before it. 

The view we have thus taken of the 
Christian ministry is supported by various 
other considerations, which we venture to 
think make it indisputable, or, we may say, 
irrefutable. 

The first we shall mention is the train- 
ing and education which Christ gave to His 
apostles. Under the Mosaic dispensation 
the duties and functions of those who were 
its administrators and officials were made 
so plain, and were described so minutely, 
that the wayfarer, though a fool, need not 
err in them. Shall we be told that under 
the Christian dispensation all things are so 
obscure that they can be discovered only 
by a few priests and bishops f So far from 
believing this, we hold that the duties and 
functions of its officials are still plainer 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 137 

and more obvious than those of the Mosaic 
dispensation. Moses gave a minute de- 
scription of the tabernacle, which was car- 
ried put in the temple. He described the al- 
tars and vessels which were to be used, and 
the animals Avhich were to be sacrificed, 
and the mode of sacrificing them. 

Is Christ's direction less plain when he 
said to a Samaritan, who contended that a 
mountain of Samaria was the proper place 
for worship, rather than the temple of 
Jerusalem, *' neither in this mountain nor 
in Jerusalem is the only place of worship, 
but they that worship the Father must wor- 
ship Him in spirit and in truth' ' ; that is, the 
worship of God is not to be confined to any 
particular place. He can be worshipped in 
any place. What is needed is that He should 
be worshipped in spirit and in truth. And 
so Christ and His apostles turned caves 
and valleys and hillsides and synagogues 
and private houses into their temples, and 
worshipped wherever men could be gath- 
ered to worship in spirit and in truth. 
Christ did not use, nor command to be used, 
any altars in His service; for one of His 
apostles tells us that Christ himself was 
both altar and sacrifice. (Heb. xiii., 10 and 
11.) Is not this as plain as Moses' teach- 
ing, and cannot the wayfaring man * * 
understand it? 



138 THE HISTOKIC EPISCOPATE 

Moses gave minute direction as to the 
kind of garments the priests should wear, 
as to the colors of the robes and their sig- 
nificance. Christ gave no directions as to 
robes and clerical costumes. We do not 
read in the New Testament of capes, and 
chasubles, and stoles, and birettas, and 
green for one season, and red for another, 
and purple for another. But Christ, and 
His apostles following him, wore their 
ordinary costumes and did not take part in 
the temple service where the priestly robes 
were worn, but only in the synagogue serv- 
ice, where a simple black robe was all that 
was used. Is there not significance in this 1 
And shall we be told that Moses should be 
followed in these things, when Christ has 
not said so, and when His apostles and 
those who immediately succeeded them did 
no such thing? 

Consider the training of the apostles in 
other respects. Christ instructed them in 
His doctrines, opened to them the Scrip- 
tures, taught them the meaning of the 
prophecies and how to proclaim the gospel, 
illustrating it before them with His own 
lips. He gave them lessons in helping the 
helpless, in feeding the hungry, in attend- 
ing to the wants of the afflicted and dis- 
tressed, but said nothing about procession- 
als and recessionals, about bowing to the 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 139 

altar and confessing to the priest; and so 
the apostles did none of these things, only 
preaching what Christ had taught. Is it 
not, therefore, plain, from the training 
which Christ gave to His apostles, that His 
ministers were sent into the world not to 
be priests, to offer sacrifices on altars, and 
dispense spiritual blessings by physical 
ceremonies ; but to be preachers and teach- 
ers, to influence the minds and hearts of 
men and lead them to that Lamb of God 
who can see them, and touch them, and 
pardon them, though He be on the throne in 
heaven ? 

This view of the Christian ministry ap- 
pears from another consideration, which is 
the last we shall draw from Holy Scrip- 
ture. It is the teaching of Christ and His 
apostles that sinners were to apply di- 
rectly/ to God and to Christ, without the in- 
tervention of man. All that ministers were 
sent to do was to act the part of Andrew, 
who led his brother to Jesus. We cannot 
help regarding the practice and teaching 
of many of the oiBficials in some of the 
churches as a direct reflection on the Deity. 
They present themselves before the people 
as the vicars and representatives of Christ, 
as though He were a mortal who had left 
the world, and were absent from it as a 
man would be, and as though they were 



140 THE HISTOEIC EPISCOPATE 

invested with authority to act for Him in 
His absence, and through them pardon was 
to be given and grace to be dispensed. 

We hold that this is directly contrary to 
Holy Scripture. The Saviour affirmed that 
though He was to be absent in human per- 
son, He would be present in spirit and in 
power. He called men to Himself to re- 
ceive pardon and grace: ''Come unto me 
all ye who are weary and heavy laden, and 
I will give you rest." The apostles found 
this to be the case with themselves and 
taught that it was to be so with all others. 
We hear an apostle saying to a poor sick 
.man, "Jesus Christ maketh thee whole." 
The apostles invited sinners to call on 
Christ, and taught that He would hear and 
forgive them. This is their teaching in 
all parts of Holy Scripture, so that we have 
their proof of the position we have been ad- 
vocating, which disproves the view that the 
ministry of Christ is designed as the chan- 
nel of the grace and power and blessing of 
Almighty God. 

But there is another view of apostolic 
succession which we must now proceed to 
consider, and to which we have already re- 
ferred. It is, that from apostolic times 
there has been a succession of the ministry 
through the bishops. This view has been 
maintained by some and denied by others 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 141 

from an early period in the Church's his- 
tory. After the time of the Reformation 
it became one of the chief bones of conten- 
tion, and at the present time is the subject 
of warm and often heated debate. Indeed, 
it forms one of the principal chasms which 
divide the Protestant world. With all due 
deference to many of the learned theolo- 
gians of both sides who have discussed the 
question, we think that the difficulty lies in 
a misunderstanding of the two opposing 
parties as to their respective positions. It 
is like the case of the combat between the 
knights who fought over a shield, which 
one declared was gold and the other as- 
serted was silver. The shield was both. 
The succession which many of the one 
party contends for is not the succession 
which the other denies. 

Apostolic succession has often been com- 
pared to a chain, the first link of which is 
fastened to the apostles, and which is con- 
tinuous to the bishops of the present time. 
This figure leads to an error; for there can 
be shown to be breaks in the chain at vari- 
ous times and places which would seem to 
destroy the succession. But a little con- 
sideration will show that it is not like a 
chain, but like a cable, consisting of a large 
number of chains mterhuined and inter- 
laced together. It can be shown that many 



142 THE HISTOEIC EPISCOPATE 

of these chains have been broken, but it 
cannot be shown that the whole cable has 
been broken, and as the different chains 
have been intertwined and interlaced with 
the others the succession of each broken 
one has been from time to time renewed; 
so that the succession has been 'kept up, 
and thus through the one or the other 
of the chains which have formed the cable 
the succession reaches to the apostles. 
It would consume more time and space 
than is at our disposal to examine the 
various tables of succession which are 
found in the different records of the 
Church. "We can only refer to two facts, 
which will be sufficient to satisfy the 
minds of candid inquirers. First, all of 
these tables show a succession of long 
periods of time. And, secondly, as three 
bishops generally took part in the conse- 
cration of a bishop, the various chains of 
succession were intertwined together so 
that one would always supply what the 
others lacked, and thus the succession 
would be kept up. We do not think these 
facts can be disputed, and so consider that 
the apostolic succession, as thus contended 
for, is proved. 

But there now arises an important en- 
quiry, which is the crux of the whole ques- 
tion. If, as we think we have shown, the 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 143 

apostolic succession is not the channel of 
Christian grace, and if there be Christian 
churches without it, of what use is this 
apostolic succession and why should we 
contend for it I We reply that the design 
of a succession is important, and shows 
that it should not be dispensed with. 

Its aim is to secure for the Church true 
and earnest r/ien, devoted to its interests, 
and full of its spirit, competent to carry on 
its work and administer its government. It 
was for this work, as we clearly see, that 
the Saviour set aside the apostles and gave 
to them their commission. And we learn 
from the pastoral epistles that it was to 
carry out this idea that St. Paul set aside 
and ordained Timothy and Titus and com- 
missioned them to do the same in the case 
of others. They were to be careful to 
choose, as far as they could, the right men. 
Said St. Paul: ''Lay hands suddenly on 
no man,'' which means ''do not be in haste 
to ordain men until you have ascertained 
that they are meet and fit for the sacred 
office of the ministry. ' ' He tells Titus that 
he left him in Crete, among other duties, to 
ordain elders, and then proceeds to de- 
scribe the kind of man the elder should be. 
To Timothy he says (Tim. ii., 2): ^'The 
things that thou hast heard of me among 
many witnesses, the same commit thou to 



144 THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 

faithful men who shall be able to teach 
others also.'' It is clear that it was the 
design of Christ and His apostles that what 
was thus begun was to be continued in the 
Church. We think history shows that it 
has been done in the way we have pointed 
out. And this is all that is contended for 
by the advocates of the view we are now 
discussing. They advocate a succession in 
order that the Church may have faithful 
and well-informed men to instruct it in 
Christian doctrine, to lead it in the path 
of purity and righteousness, and to govern 
and control it. 

But now some facts loom up before us 
which may be regarded by many as an in- 
superable objection to this view. The apos- 
tolic succession did not apparently secure 
for the Church the result for which we have 
claimed it was instituted. It is patent in 
history, as we have already stated, that the 
Christian ministry became corrupt, and 
that for generations a large number were 
not faithful to their Lord, either in their 
teaching or in their examples. 

Now, while this must be admitted, we do 
not consider it as destructive of the posi- 
tion we are advocating; for it is to be no- 
ticed that the same argument will apply 
to the Bible and all the means of grace. 
For this corruption invaded the Church in 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 145 

spite of the sacraments which are recog- 
nized means of grace, and in spite of the 
Bible, which was the guide-hook of the 
Church, and in spite of the examples of the 
holy men of old, which were held up before 
the people. As none will contend that these 
should be dispensed with on this account, 
we would remind them that the ministry 
is in the same category, and that its succes- 
sion rests on the same foundation. We only 
see in the cases referred to the painful 
truth that the human race is corrupt and 
can touch nothing that it does not some- 
times contaminate. The view which we 
have presented of the succession receives a 
sanction and an approval in the course 
which has been pursued by all denomina- 
tions of Christians without exception. They 
all claim a succession from some source 
subsequent to the time of the apostles, and 
they only differ from the Episcopalians in 
not going back so far. If this should not 
be at once recognized, we would call at- 
tention to the fact that they all practise the 
rite of ordination, which can be traced back 
to some leader or other. Now what is or- 
dination but the securing a succession — 
the forging the chain of the ministry? 

Let it be observed, that this succession, 
which is designed by the different Churches 
to give them a faithful and efficient min- 



146 THE HISTOBIC EPISCOPATE 

istry, has not been entirely successful in 
the case of any Church. They have all had 
successors of Peter when he denied the 
Master, and successors of Judas who be- 
trayed Him, and successors of the evan- 
gelist Mark, who for a time deserted his 
work, and successors of Simon Magus, who 
sought the divine gift that he might sell it 
for gold. And yet all these Churches have 
found an advantage in succession, secured 
by ordination, and none desire to break 
the chain or reduce its length. They thus 
sanction the view of apostolic succession 
which we are now considering, and cannot 
consistently set it aside on account of the 
corruption which has sometimes accom- 
panied it. 

Having thus, as we believe, vindicated 
apostolic succession as taught in Holy 
Scripture, we take up the important ques- 
tion : How has it come to pass that so many 
of the Christian Churches, or, if it should 
please any one better, the Protestant Chris- 
tian bodies, are without this succession? 
As painful as it is, we must not hesitate to 
tell the truth. It is owing, we reply, to the 
course pursued; or it might be as well to 
say, the course not pursued by the bishops. 
As a general rule, when a deadly wound is 
given, it is the hand which wields the wea- 



THE HISTOBIC EPISCOPATE 147 

pon, but in this case the head has decapi- 
tated itself. 

As all readers of history know, the 
Christian Church before the time of the Be- 
f ormation had become exceedingly corrupt. 
As the Bible condemned the corruption, it 
was relegated to the shelf, as the prophet 
Isaiah was put in prison when he con- 
demned the wicked rulers of Israel. But a 
monk named Luther found the Book and 
began to disseminate its truths. He was 
commanded to desist^ and when he refused 
the sword of persecution was drawn 
against him. This aroused the Christian 
public, and many of them came to his res- 
cue. Then came a sharp conflict, which re- 
sulted in a separation in the Christian 
Church. But no bishops joined in the 
Reformation on the continent. And so Lu- 
ther and the reformers were left with the 
Bible and the creeds and the sacraments, 
but no episcopate; while their opponents 
kept the episcopate, with the Bible on the 
shelf. 

The course pursued by the reformers 
has been justified and defended by the 
great champion of the Historic Episcopate, 
Richard Hooker. In his Ecclesiastical 
Polity he says : ^ ^ There may be sometimes 
very just and sufficient reason to allow or- 
dination made without a bishop. Where 



148 THE HISTOKIC EPISCOPATE 

the Church must needs have some ordained, 
and neither hath nor can have possibly a 
bishop to ordain, in case of such necessity 
the ordinary institution of God hath given 
oftentimes and may give place, and there- 
fore we are not simply without exception 
to urge a lineal descent of power from the 
apostles by continued succession of bishops 
in every effectual succession." The same 
position has been taken by nearly all the 
leading bishops and most learned men of 
the Anglican Church from the time of the 
Eeformation to the present day. With- 
out attempting to exhaust the list, we men- 
tion the names of Archbishop Cranmer, 
and Latimer and Ridley, the martyrs of the 
English Reformation; Archbishops Whit- 
gift,* Parker, Usher, Wake and others; 
Bishops Morton, Jewel, Hale, Forbes, Stil- 
lingfleet, Burnet and others; Doctors Ed- 
wards, Reynolds, Bradford, Lambert, Pil- 
lington and others ; all of them leading men 
in their Church. 

The leading men of the Protestant Epis- 
copal Church in America, such as Bishops 
White, Madison, Moore, Griswold, Meade, 
Hopkins, Smith, Mcllvaine, Lee, Elliott, 
Johns, and a host of others, including some 
of the most learned divines of the Church, 
have agreed in this opinion with their 
brethren in England. It is to be noted that 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 149 

they have gone beyond mere assertion, and 
have showed that they regarded the minis- 
try of the non-Episcopal Churches as valid 
by communing with them as brethren, al- 
though they themselves held to Episcopacy 
as the better way. 

In England the same conflict took place 
as in Germany, but with this difference; 
the English reformers came out of the 
Church of Eome not only with the Bible, 
the creeds and the sacraments, but with the 
episcopate in addition. And so the Episco- 
pal Churches of England and America can 
offer to their brethren a platform consist- 
ing of the four planks of the Lambeth and 
Chicago quadrilateral. And this has been 
offered to the various denominations of 
Christians as the basis of a union. 

Let us now suppose that all the Chris- 
tian denominations have been convinced of 
the importance of organic union, and have 
assembled in council to consider it, and 
if possible to bring it about. Suppose 
the question of the ministry to have 
come up for discussion and settlement. 
Thev all have a ministrv, and the min- 
istry of each has a succession from some 
leader of more or less remote period. 
Now, would it be unreasonable in the 
Church which had a succession from the 
apostles to say: ^^We all have a succes- 



150 THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 

sion in our ministries; but ours goes 
back far beyond yours. Will you not re- 
ceive this succession from us, so that all 
may be in the same line?" In view of the 
facts stated, we do not believe any would 
decline to take the step if this were the 
only obstacle in the way. We believe our- 
selves to be reasonable in thinking that, as 
all the Christians of Antioch received the 
suggestions sent by the council of the apos- 
tles in Jerusalem, so there would be an 
unanimous reply, ''We will not object." 

If we may say so, we do not believe that 
this fourth proposition of the pan- Anglican 
Council is the real obstacle to a union of 
Christendom. If properly understood, it 
would probably be accepted by a large num- 
ber of the people of every denomination. 
Where, then, is the difficulty? It lies, we 
must think, in other directions. 

The various denominations, like the na- 
tions, are troubled with evils within their 
own borders, which disturb their peace and 
threaten their existence, not to say their 
usefulness. Take the Episcopal Church, 
for example. It is divided into several par- 
ties — Ritualists, Low-Churchmen, High- 
Churchmen, and Broad-Churchmen — who 
are separated by almost vital differences 
of doctrine, and have been contending with 
each other since the time of the Reforma- 



THE HISTORIC EPISCOPATE 151 

tion. Suppose, now, all the denominations 
to agree to become Episcopalians, what 
would follow? As when ministers of these 
denominations enter the Episcopal Church 
some join one party, some another, so it 
would be if the floodgates were opened. 
We may suppose the Methodists would 
unite with the Ritualists, the Presbyterians 
with the Broad-Churchmen, the Lutherans 
with the High-Churchmen, and the Baptists 
with the Low-Churchmen. Then, from the 
very nature of the case, there would be a 
far greater strife and conflict than is going 
on how between the different denomina- 
tions. The various parties, recruited in 
numbers and invigorated with new zeal and 
strength, thus brought closely together, like 
wild animals put into the same cage, 
would — But we must draw a veil over 
the scene, and place a bandage on imagi- 
nation's eyes. We will venture, however, 
to say this much — that history and phi- 
lology and biography and criticism, high 
and low, and ancient canon law, and theol- 
ogy would all probably be turned into ec- 
clesiastical weapons, and be used in deadly 
warfare. 

With the facts of the case as we view 
them, we do not see that anything would 
be gained by all the denominations uniting 
with the Episcopal Church. As all the 



152 THE HISTOEIC EPISCOPATE 

other denominations are already split up 
into many fragments, we do not see that 
they are in any better plight. So that no 
denomination, as far as we can jndge, af- 
fords as yet any centre for a union. To 
us it appears that before the Churches can 
come together there must be some consen- 
sus of belief in each separate Church, and 
more agreement in the meaning of Holy 
Scripture, as well as in the teaching of ec- 
clesiastical history and systematic theol- 
ogy. It was a noble and loving thing in the 
bishops in the Anglican and American 
Churches to desire the unity of God's 
Church on earth, and to hold out the hand 
to what we delight to call ''our sister 
Churches''; but in their loving zeal they 
forgot the conditions of their own com- 
munion. May we not humbly suggest to 
them to turn their faces towards their own 
people, and unite their efforts to heal the 
wounds of their own daughter of Zionl We 
cannot but think that they hold in their 
hands the power to do much towards elimi- 
nating the evil doctrines which have so long 
tormented and crippled the Protestant 
Episcopal Church. And may we not, for 
the Church, repeat to them the words 
spoken by the leper to the Divine Saviour, 
''If thou wilt thou canst make me clean"? 



WHAT IS THE TRUE IDEA OF THE 
CHRISTIAN SACRAMENTS 1 

This question needs to be discussed be- 
cause it is not yet settled. The Christian 
churches are at variance as to the mean- 
ing and the object of the sacraments or- 
dained of Christ. How can they be brought 
to agreement I We cannot doubt that if the 
Holy Scriptures were understood all would 
agree. And we must believe that the Scrip- 
tures were given to be understood. Study 
and research, with prayer, throw light on 
the sacred page, and these are promoted by 
discussion. Discussion, indeed, is the fur- 
nace into which doctrines must be cast in 
order that the pure gold of truth may be 
separated from the dross of error. But 
those who discuss must be on their guard. 
For there is danger they may meet with the 
fate of the servants of Nebuchadnezzar, 
who, when casting the three servants of 
God into a fiery furnace, were overcome 
by the heat and perished in the flames. 
Sometimes the fire of controversy spreads, 
and reaches those who are bringing doc- 

153 



154 WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS? 

trine to the furnace, to their great injury. 
The past ages have often witnessed this re- 
sult. We should therefore approach the 
question before us with caution, and seek 
to be clothed from above with the fire-proof 
robe of Christian charity. 

TWO DIFFERENT VIEWS OF THE SACRAMENTS 

While there are many different views 
taken of the sacraments, there are two, 
which to a great extent include the others, 
and which are now to engage our atten- 
tion. 

The first of these has been sometimes 
called the sacramentarian view, on account 
of the prominence which it gives to the rites 
in themselves. It is held by most of those 
Episcopalians who are called High Church- 
men^ and may be briefly stated as follows : 

The sacraments of Baptism and the 
Lord's Supper are the channels through 
which the spiritual blessings of Christian- 
ity are imparted to mankind. Through 
them men receive the benefits of the atone- 
ment made by Christ on the cross, and also 
the graces and influences of the Holy 
Spirit. These sacraments can be adminis- 
tered only by bishops, and by priests who 
have received ordination through the hands 
of bishops. The bishops must have re- 
ceived power and authority from other 



WHAT IS TKUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS? 155 

bishops, who must in turn have received 
it from bishops, back to the time of the 
Apostles, through whose imposition of 
hands the authority must have been im- 
parted. The Apostles were enabled to do 
this because empowered by Christ, who 
commissioned them to communicate, and 
hand down this saving influence through 
the Episcopacy. From these postulates it 
follows, that the great work of the ministry 
is the administration of the sacraments; 
and preaching is of use to draw men to 
the sacraments. 

One of the chief authorities of the school 
of thought which holds these views is Mr. 
Sadler, who thus presents them in his book 
entitled ^^ Church Doctrine Bible Truth," 
p. 232 : * ' By baptism God ordains that men 
should become partakers of the atone- 
ment. ' ' In another place he says : ^ ^ Bap- 
tism, the Lord's Supper and Absolution 
are alike in this respect, that they are the 
means of applying the atonement of Christ 
to the believer, through the action of 
others, that is ab extra/' And again: *^It 
is quite clear that if we receive these sacra- 
ments from God, through the hands of oth- 
ers, we must receive them by virtue of some 
official poiver of administering them, which 
these persons in question have received. In 
order that their functions might be per- 



156 WHAT IS TEUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS? 

petual, Christ or the Holy Spirit gave to 
the Apostles the power of transmitting the 
authority to exercise them, by means of 
the laying on of hands or ordination. ' ' 

The same views are presented in the 
*^ Tracts for the Times," issued from Ox- 
ford ; and also in numerous pamphlets and 
papers, written and disseminated on both 
sides of the Atlantic. 

The other view to which we have referred 
is essentially different, and may be briefly 
stated as follows : 

The Christian sacraments were not or- 
dained of Christ to be the great and chief 
channels of divine grace and pardon for 
sin, but were instituted to be signs and 
seals, and witnesses of these benefits, which 
are produced by other means, and are only 
increased by the sacraments. 

In the 11th Article of Religion of the 
Protestant Episcopal Church we read : 

^^We are accounted righteous before 
God only for the merits of our Lord and 
Saviour Jesus Christ hi/ faith/' 

This is in accordance with the teachings 
of St. Paul, who in the tenth chapter of the 
Epistle to the Romans, tells us : ^ ^ Christ is 
the end of the law for righteousness to 
every one that helievetli/' And again: 
** Whosoever calleth on the name of the 
Lord shall be saved. How, then, shall they 



WHAT IS TKUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS ? 157 

call on Him in whom they have not be- 
lieved, and how shall they believe in Him 
of whom they have not heard, and how 
shall they hear without a preacher T ' Thus 
making the Word of God the great instru- 
ment of religious benefit, and preaching 
the great work of the Christian minister. 

The sacrament of Baptism was given to 
be the sign and seal of the pardon and 
grace given, just as circumcision was the 
sign and seal of the faith and acceptance of 
Abraham, which he had, being yet uncir- 
cumcised. 

The sacrament of the Lord's Supper was 
designed to present visibly the great truth, 
of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, 
whereby He made atonement for sin. This 
great truth, received into the heart through 
faith, blesses and benefits the receivers. 
They who thus receive the sacrament ^ ' feed 
on Christ in their hearts, and are strength- 
ened and refreshed." 

If it be asked: "Why are infants bap- 
tized, when by reason of their tender age 
they cannot receive faith and repentance T' 
the answer is: "These are promised, and 
infants are baptized, and thus receive the 
sign of the covenant, in order that they may 
be brought up in the same. In other words, 
Baptism brings infants into the Church in 
order that they may be surrounded with the 



158 WHAT IS TEUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTSf 

means of grace ; in order that they may be 
warmed by the breath of prayer, and be 
guarded by the watchful care of believing 
Christians." In the words of another: 
^ * It puts them to school, where Christ is the 
Master, and the Spirit monitor ; where they 
may have instruction from the Bible, and 
Christians as companions, and thus be 
placed in the most favorable circumstances 
for the reception of Christian truth into 
their hearts, and its development in their 
minds and souls. '^ 

This is what is called the evangelical 
view, and is widely held. As it differs rad- 
ically from the first view presented, the 
question arises, which has reason and 
Scripture on its side! Our reply is, the 
last, or evangelical view, and we shall now 
proceed to present the reasons and argu- 
ments which have led us to this opinion. 

THE FIKST ARGUMENT 

Our first argument is drawn from the 
nature of man, as exhibited in the Bible, 
and as presented to our view in the world. 
Man has been created with a twofold na- 
ture. He has a body and a soul, which dif- 
fer entirely in their character as in their 
functions. The body is a machine with 
various complicated contrivances, capable 
of being used to produce varied and numer- 



WHAT IS TKUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS'? 159 

ous and wonderful results. The sonl, in- 
cluding the mind or intellect, has the con- 
trol of this macliine, directing it and using 
it, as an engineer controls and directs an 
engine. When man communicates with his 
fellow-man, it is not the body communicat- 
ing with body, but mind communicating 
with mind ; the sounds which we call speech, 
and which are produced by the body, are 
only the medium through which mind 
communicates with mind. It is by thoughts 
and ideas, the product of mind, that men 
are led, or directed, to certain courses of 
action and conduct. By this means they 
are induced to engage in this or that pur- 
suitj and when they go astray into paths of 
danger or of evil they are led back by 
thoughts and ideas presented to their 
minds. By this means the young are 
trained for the various pursuits of life, 
and communities of men are governed and 
controlled. 

Now, it is not to be supposed that the 
God who created man thus, would, in com- 
municating with him, or influencing him, or 
changing him, or reforming him, use some 
other method. We would rather suppose 
that He would, in accordance with the na- 
ture which He has given to His creature 
man, use thoughts and ideas, communicated 
by speech and impressed on his mind and 



160 WHAT IS TKUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS 1 

heart by the appropriate feelings and sym- 
pathies of his nature, to lead him to this 
or that particular course of conduct or of 
life. This is certainly a reasonable suppo- 
sition, and is certainly in accordance with 
the teachings of the Bible. 

From the Old Testament we learn that 
when God would lead men back from the 
ways of sin and death He sent angels, and 
commissioned and inspired prophets, to 
communicate with them by speech, and in- 
fluence them by ideas and thoughts pre- 
sented to their minds. In this way were the 
patriarchs influenced to become servants 
and followers of God. In this way was 
Moses directed, as he led and governed the 
children of Israel. And in this way were 
the people controlled and reformed from 
age to age. 

When the great Son of God came into the 
world He used the communications con- 
tained in the Old Testament to influence the 
minds of the people, and gave lessons and 
teachings of His own to influence their 
minds to become His disciples, and in this 
ivay won the men and women who became 
His followers. When He commissioned 
His Apostles, this idea was still prominent. 
He sent them to preach the gospel, and 
through this preaching the world was to be 
converted and changed. This is made very 



WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS? 161 

clear in the writings of the Apostles. Let 
a few quotations suffice to show it. St. Paul 
said: '^The preaching of the cross is to 
them who perish foolishness, but unto us 
who are saved it is the power of God. ' ' St. 
Peter said : ^ ^ Being born again, not of cor- 
ruptible seed but of incorruptible, by the 
Word of God, which liveth and abideth for- 
ever. ^ ' And in every part of the Bible, and 
by all the inspired writers, it is made clear 
that ideas and thoughts impressed on men's 
minds are the great agency by which they 
are changed into Christians. Now, inas- 
much as the first theory of the sacraments 
referred to teaches that men are changed in 
some other way, this is one reason for re- 
jecting it; and as the second theory de- 
scribed is in accordance with this view, this 
is one reason for receiving it. 

SECOND ARGUMENT 

Our second argument is drawn from the 
nature of our Lord Jesus Christ. It ap- 
pears from Holy Scripture that he had a 
twofold nature. He was both God and man. 
There was more than one purpose in this 
fact. Christ was bom of woman, and thus 
assumed human nature, not only to offer 
Himself as a substitute for the sinful race 
of man, and bear the penalty of their sins, 
that all who would accept Him might be 



162 WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS? 

saved; but also to present the Deity to man, 
so that He might influence them as man in- 
fluences his fellow-man. St. Paul tells us, 
*^ We have not an high priest that cannot be 
touched with the feeling of our infirmities, 
but was in all points tempted like as we 
are/' And the Apostle holds up the Sav- 
iour to the minds and hearts of men as the 
great means of influencing them. "When 
Christ went about His mission throughout 
Judea, He sympathized with the people in 
their troubles and sorrows, and thus indi- 
cated to their minds the feelings of God to- 
wards them. He performed cures upon the 
sick and afflicted, to let men know what God 
is doing and will do for them, and taught 
them the truths of religion with His own 
lips. Here we have a clear indication of 
God's design, that men are to be influenced 
to become religious, and to be changed into 
new creatures, not by material means, as 
wafer, and bread and wine, but by thoughts 
and ideas presented to their minds. And 
thus the incarnation of Christ is an argu- 
ment against the first theory of the sacra- 
ments which we have presented, and in 
favor of the second. 

THIED AEGUMENT 

Our third argument is drawn from the 
work of the Holy Spirit as presented in the 



WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS I 163 

Bible. We learn from Holy Scripture that 
the Holy Spirit takes part in the work of 
changing the sinner into the righteous man. 
The Spirit influences men to leave the evil 
and choose the good. We read that the 
Christian is ''born of the Spirit''; that 
Christ ''baptized with the Holy Ghost.'' 
The Saviour promised His disciples that 
He would send the Holy Spirit" to convince 
the world of sin, of righteousness, and of 
judgment." From these and many other 
passages it appears that the Holy Spirit is 
concerned in the regeneration of the human 
soul. The question arises, what agencies 
does the Spirit use in the regenerating 
work? To this the Bible replies in no 
ambiguous terms. St. Paul says, "Ye have 
purified your souls in obeying the truth 
through the Spirit"; and again, "born 
again of incorruptible seed by the Word of 
God." We are told that "the sword of the 
Spirit is the Word of God," and men are 
exhorted to "receive with meekness the en- 
grafted word, which is able to save their 
souls." 

It thus appears that the Holy Spirit was 
one with Christ in acting on the minds and 
hearts of men by thoughts and ideas. And 
so in considering the work of the Holy 
Spirit, we are brought to the conclusion 
that the view which makes the ivaters of 



164 WHAT IS TEUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS I' 

baptism the means of man's regeneration, 
and the elements of the Lord's Snpper the 
great channel of grace for his renewal when 
he falls into sin, is not in accordance with 
Holy Scripture. And therefore we are led 
to reject the view which teaches this, and to 
accept that which makes prominent the 
Word of God, which is the sword of the 
Spirit. 

FOUETH AEGUMENT 

Our fourth argument is drawn from the 
parables and discourses of our Saviour. 
The view that the sinful members of the 
human family are regenerated, and made 
Christians by the operation or agency of 
outward rites, cannot be reconciled with 
the words and general teachings of the 
Lord Jesus Christ. In all His discourses 
and parables Christ made it clear that it is 
by ideas and thoughts presented to their 
spiritual natures, and acting upon them 
through the influence of the Holy Spirit, 
that men are made Christians. This is evi- 
dent in the parable of the sower. Here the 
Saviour compares His own work, and the 
work of His ministers, to the sowing of 
seed. The Word of God is the seed, the 
hearts and minds of men the soil. When the 
Word preached is not received into the 
mind, or is not permitted to develop there, 



WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS 1 165 

men do not become the servants and chil- 
dren of God. When it is received and acted 
on, then are men regenerated, and become 
Christians. If baptism were the means of 
implanting the gospel in the heart, it would 
certainly have been mentioned in this para- 
ble ; for it is evidently designed to point ont 
the agency which changes men into Chris- 
tians. But as it is not mentioned, it follows 
that baptism does not implant the seed of 
the divine life, as has been often taught. 
The same view is presented in the parable 
of the prodigal son. And in all the para- 
bles of the Saviour we find the same ele- 
ments. Ideas and truths presented to 
men's minds are what move them and lead 
them to God and secure their salvation ; not 
rites and ceremonies and ordinances. 

The same truth is prominent in Christ's 
figurative expressions. When He said to 
His Apostles, ^'ye are the light of the 
world," He clearly intimated that one of 
their most important functions was to com- 
municate to men the knowledge of the gos- 
pel. This knowledge, like light, was to re- 
veal the path of safety which led to life and 
to heaven. Moreover, they were required 
to disseminate that knowledge in the words 
'^Let your light so shine before men that 
they may see your good works and be led 
to glorify your Father which is in heaven. ' ' 



166 WHAT IS TEUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS? 

We take up next a passage which has 
been relied on as teaching the sacramentar- 
ian view, but which furnishes a strong 
argument against it. We allude to the 
sixth chapter of St. John's Gospel. The 
occasion of the discourse of our Saviour, 
contained in this chapter, is the miraculous 
feeding of ^ve thousand people with a few 
loaves and fishes, which must be considered 
in order to bring out the meaning. It ap- 
pears that the people were so much im- 
pressed with the miracle of the loaves that 
they followed the Saviour around the lake, 
over which He had crossed, with the design 
of making Him their temporal king. They 
evidently desired to enter His service be- 
cause it appeared that He could supply all 
their temporal wants, and thus relieve them 
from all labor and fatigiae. They did not 
give this reason; but the Saviour at once 
perceived and unveiled it. ^'Ye seek me," 
He said, ^'not because ye saw the miracle, 
but because ye did eat of the loaves and 
were filled.'' Then He proceeded to in- 
struct them as to His mission and their 
duty. ^' Labor not for the meat which per- 
isheth, but for that which endureth unto 
everlasting life, which the Son of Man will 
give unto you. ' ' When they asked what la- 
bor was required, the Saviour replied: 
''This is the work of God, that ye should 



WHAT IS TEUE IDEA OF SACKAMENTS ? 167 

believe in Him whom He hath sent. ' ' The 
gospel work was to hear of Christ, to learn 
about Him, to believe on Him as the 
Saviour, the leader, the ruler, and involved 
in that belief was the following Him. 

So far, no one could understand the 
Saviour as teaching that it was necessary 
to partake of His flesh and blood in the 
Holy Eucharist in order to enter the king- 
dom of heaven. Although He had said 
''they must labor for the meat which en- 
dureth unto everlasting life," He had ex- 
plained to them that they did this ''when 
they believed on Him whom God had sent. ' ' 

But the subsequent part of this chapter, 
which is principally used in support of the 
sacramentarian view, is only an explana- 
tion and a development of the preceding 
teaching, and does not support that view, 
as we shall proceed to show. When the 
leaders of the crowd said to the Saviour, 
' ' Our fathers did eat manna in the wilder- 
ness, but what sign showest thou?" He 
again called attention to Himself as the 
cause of safety and life. ' ' My Father giv- 
eth you the true bread from heaven, for the 
bread of God is He which cometh down 
from heaven, and giveth life unto the 
world." Then, when they asked, "Lord, 
evermore give us this bread," He replied, 
"I am the bread of life," and immediately 



168 WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS? • 

proceeded to explain what He meant by 
^ ^ eating of this bread. ' ' ' ' He that cometh 
to me shall never hunger, and he that be- 
lieveth on me shall never thirst.'^ And 
again: ^'This is the will of Him that sent 
me, that every one that seeth the Son and 
believeth on Him may have everlasting life, 
and I will raise him up at the last day." 
Thus clearly teaching that the coming 
to Him, and believing on Him, was the 
receiving and eating the bread which se- 
cured eternal life. When the Saviour sub- 
sequently changed the expression, and 
spoke of giving His ^^ flesh and blood" 
for the people, He taught the same lesson, 
with the addition that He pointed to 
the ivay in which He was to save them — 
that is, by His death on the cross, in 
the place of the sinner; so that the 
punishment for sin might be averted 
from those who would believe on Him. 
And it is a most significant fact that 
the most prominent example of salvation 
given in the Bible, and therefore of one who 
must have ' ' eaten of His flesh and drunk of 
His blood" (for there was no salvation 
without this), was of a man who could only 
have eaten of the flesh and drunk of the 
blood of Christ by believing on Him. We 
allude, of course, to the repentant thief, 



WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS? 169 

who was crucified with the Saviour and en- 
tered with Him into Paradise. 

It is plain, therefore, that the words of 
the Saviour, in the sixth chapter of St. 
John, viewed in the light of the facts which 
accompanied them and followed them, give 
no countenance to the sacrament arian 
view ; and that, together with the parables 
and other discourses of our Lord, they 
favor only the view which we have called 
evangelical. 

FIFTH AEGUMENT 

Our fifth argument is drawn from the 
necessity of a choice in the Christian re- 
ligion. The coming of the Lord Jesus 
Christ to earth, in the way and manner He 
did, clearly indicates that it was the de- 
sign of God that men should return to Him, 
and become His servants and children, by 
their own free will and choice. Had God 
desired to coerce men, His Son would, 
without doubt, have brought with Him all 
the means and agencies for coercion. He 
would have been surrounded with angels, 
and with powerful servants, to compel all 
to follow JBim or to perish at once. But the 
fact that He came without any such instru- 
mentalities; that He was bom among the 
poor and powerless ; that He went forth, as 
a preacher, a persuader, a sympathizer 



170 WHAT IS TKUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS ? 

with the suffering and afflicted, and a 
friend of all, clearlv indicates that His 
design was that men should be brought 
to God through their own choice. Every- 
thing like coercion of the body or mind 
or heart was avoided. Christ denounced 
and disclaimed all appeals to physical 
force. When His disciples wished to 
use power and violence to strike terror 
into His opponents, the Saviour refused, 
and rebuked those who suggested it. 
While He was upon earth His work was 
with the wills and affections of men. He 
said to the people,'^ Whosoever willM^i him 
take the water of life." And in explaining 
why the children of Israel did not become 
His disciples He said : ' ' They will not come 
to me that they may have life." The 
Apostles were sent out to carry on the work 
in the same way — to appeal to the wills and 
affections of men. St. Paul said, ''Know- 
ing the terrors of the Lord, we persuade 
men." And all the Apostles appealed to 
men, b}^ the meekness and gentleness and 
love of Him who was crucified for them, to 
turn to the living God and be saved. 

Now, although nothing is said of the use 
of force by those who hold to the sacramen- 
tarian system, yet this is the practical ef- 
fect of this view. Little children brought 
to the Church by their parents, without any 



WHAT IS TKUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS? 171 

will of their own, are regenerated, renewed, 
and made Christians, through the agency 
of God's priests, by the waters of baptism, 
without their knowledge or consent. Mr. 
Sadler tells us (and he is one of the great 
oracles of this system,) ''that as men be- 
come partakers of the nature of Adam by 
generation, without any choice or act of 
their own, it would seem to be peculiarly 
fitting that they should become partakers 
of the nature of Christ by regeneration in 
the same condition of infantile helplessness 
and unconsciousness." It would rather, 
we think, seem to be fitting that, as Adam 
fell from God by his own choice, he and all 
his descendants should return by their own 
choice. And certainly all the machinery of 
the Jewish and gospel systems is con- 
structed on this principle; while the teach- 
ing of all God's messengers, both angels 
and men, indicate it. And so, for this rea- 
son also, we must reject the sacramentarian 
view and accept the evangelical, which is in 
accord with it. 

SIXTH AEGUMENT 

Our sixth argument is drawn from the 
descriptions of the last judgTaent, given in 
the Bible. If the sacramentarian view be 
true; if the sacraments be the great chan- 
nels of grace, so that through baptism men 



172 :WHAT IS TEUE IDEA OF SACEAMENTS? 

are changed and made Christians, and 
through the Holy Eucharist they are con- 
stantly renewed and kept Christians, we 
would expect to have some allusion made 
to these facts in the accounts given in the 
Bible of the judgment of men at the last 
day. Surely, in such case, those would be 
commended who had brought large num- 
bers to baptism. And further, something 
would be said of the blessing of baptism 
itself. But we do not find any such utter- 
ances in connection with the accounts of 
this great transaction. We read that men 
are to be accepted or rejected for believ- 
ing in Christ or not believing in Him^ for 
following Him or not following Him, for 
doing His works or not doing them; but 
nothing is said about the sacraments in this 
connection. 

Further, the various instrumentalities 
and means by which men are brought to 
God, and made acceptable to Him, are men- 
tioned in connection with the judgment, but 
the sacraments do not appear among them. 
The Word of God, the preaching of the gos- 
pel, the words spoken by the lips, the life 
and example are referred to ; but nothing is 
said of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. 
Now, if the sacraments are but signs and 
seals of other things, then we would expect 
this silence with respect to them, and to 



WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS? 173 

have only the things signified spoken of. 
Hence we have here a strong argument 
against the sacramentarian view and in 
favor of that called the evangelical. 

SEVENTH ARGUMENT 

Another argTiment may be drawn from 
the account of the institution of the Lord's 
Supper in the Bible and the teachings of 
the Apostles with regard to it. We have 
time but to glance a moment at this im- 
portant point. That the Saviour instituted 
the Holy Eucharist before His crucifixion 
must have been done with a design. That 
design, among others, would seem to be to 
guard His disciples against the idea that 
the bread and wine were truly His flesh and 
blood. His words, themselves, seem to ex- 
clude this idea. ^ATien He took the bread 
and wine and gave to the disciples He said, 
*^Do this in remembrance of me." If we 
take these words in their plain and literal 
sense — and we do not see how they can be 
taken otherwise — then it is clear that the 
Saviour intended that the elements of bread 
and wine were to bring to His disciples, not 
His person, but the rememhrance of His 
person ; and that the disciples so understood 
Him appears from the fact that they did 
not ask an explanation of the words *Hhis 
is my body, this is my blood." Indeed, the 



174 WHAT IS TKUE IDEA OF SACBAMENTS ? 

fact that Christ partook of the elements 
Himself would &l the meaning of His 
words so that they wonld understand them 
not to mean literally His body and blood, 
and that they should partake of them, in 
remembrance of Him. 

Passing by various other considerations 
and arguments which might be arrayed 
against the sacramentarian view of the sac- 
raments, we notice one more. 

EIGHTH AEGUMENT 

Our eighth argument is drawn from the 
necessity of unity and consistency in Holy 
Scripture. The Holy Scriptures would be 
self-destructive if they were contradictory. 
If one part taught a doctrine which another 
part denied or set aside, we could not be- 
lieve that the Bible came from God. But 
the consistency of the book is clearly seen 
in all of its statements and doctrines and 
teachings. The prophecies which refer to 
the Messiah, though apparently conflicting 
and contradictory, are all fulfilled in the 
most remarkable manner in the Lord Jesus 
Christ. The same may be said of all ful- 
filled prophecy. But the sacramentarian 
view arrays one part of the Bible against 
another. It makes the administration of 
the sacraments the great duty of the min- 
isters of God ; whereas in many places the 



WHAT IS TRUE IDEA OF SACRAMENTS? 175 

Bible tells us that the great duty of minis- 
ters is the preaching of the Word and the 
teaching of the people. The. Saviour's 
great work was teaching and preaching, 
and He sent out His Apostles and ministers 
to do the same. The Saviour prayed to His 
Father, ^'Sanctify them through Thy 
truth; Thy Word is truth.'' And we read 
of the Christians that ''they were born 
again, not of corruptible seed, but incor- 
ruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth 
and abideth forever/^ 

The sacramentarian system teaches, 
again, that the benefits of the atonement 
are secured to men by the waters of bap- 
tism; but in the Bible we read that men 
secure these benefits by believing in the 
Lord Jesus Christ. St. Paul said, ''Whoso- 
ever helieveth in the Lord Jesus Christ 
shall be saved." And again, "Being justi- 
fied by faith, we have peace with God." So 
that for this reason, also, we are led to re- 
ject this system and receive that which 
teaches that men are saved by a faith 
which leads to works, like Abraham's, and 
that Baptism is only a sign and seal of 
God's acceptance, thus reconciling the 
teachings of Holy Writ. 

It thus appears from various considera- 
tions and for various reasons that the view 
of the sacraments called sacramentarian 



176 WHAT IS TEUE IDEA OF SACKAMENTS? 

cannot be the true one ; that it is opposed to 
Scripture as well as to reason; while the 
other, called the evangelical, is supported 
by both, and therefore should be received. 
It is greatly important to take a correct 
view of this question, for on it depends the 
character of the work in which the ministry 
is to engage. If the former be accepted, 
then ministers should go forth with baptis- 
mal fonts in their hands to baptize the na- 
tions and thus change them into the ser- 
vants of God. If the latter be received, 
then they must go forth with the Bible in 
their hands, and present the great truths 
it contains to the minds and hearts of the 
people, that in this way they may be con- 
verted and brought to God ; and when they 
have repented and turned to the living God, 
to baptize them, as the sign of the change 
which shall have taken place, and the seal 
of the forgiveness and acceptance of God; 
baptizing infants in token that they shall 
he trained up to repentance and faith , that 
they may be pardoned and accepted of 
God. 



PRIEST OE PEESBYTEE 

The following article is designed to show 
that sacerdotalism is foreign to the stand- 
ards of the Protestant Episcopal Church; 
that its ministers are sent to preach the 
gospel, and not as priests to offer sacrifice 
on altars. The first part is a letter, writ- 
ten by a presbyter to an evangelical paper, 
and furnishes a text for the succeeding ar- 
ticle, which will speak for itself. 

^ ^ Some claim that a Spriest' is a sacrificer 
answering to the Latin sacerdos and the 
Greek lepsvs, whose chief duty was the 
immolation of victims and the divination 
from their entrails. The Church of Eome 
teaches that the mass is a sacrifice and that 
those who perform it are sacrificers; the 
Anglican Church, including of course the 
Protestant Episcopal Church, on the other 
hand, abhors the notion in the 31st article, 
saying : ' Wherefore the sacrifice of masses 
in the which it was commonly said, that the 
priest did offer Christ for the quick and 
dead, to have remission of pain or guilt, 

177 



178 PKIEST OR PRESBYTER 

were blasphemous fables and dangerous de- 
ceits.' This is conclusive evidence that a 
Spriest' in the Anglican communion is not 
a mass-priest or sacrificer. 

*^But what is he? Simply and solely a 
presbyter or elder, for priest is derived by 
contraction from the Greek 7tps5l^vrspo5 
an elder, and was used in that sense by the 
Anglo-Saxons who introduced the word 
precester, which by further contraction be- 
came preste and priest, just as from the 
same word are derived the German pyies- 
ter, the French prestre, the Italian prete, 
and the Spanish preshytero. 

^'This derivation, it may be contended, 
does not prove that the prayer-book 
Spriest' signifies * presbyter' or ^ elder.' 
The contention, however, is idle, for the 
proof comes from the book itself, which 
A. D. 1571 was published both in English 
and Latin, the latter closely conforming to 
the former, and possessing equal authority. 
Wherever the English book has 'priest,' 
'priests,' and 'priesthood,' the Latin in- 
variably renders presbyter and presbyter- 
eus. 

"This proves beyond the possibility of 
doubt the true meaning of the word." 

Our esteemed friend has presented in the 
foregoing article an argument, drawn from 



PKIEST OE PKESBYTER 179 

important and incontestable facts, which, 
we think, will materially help to settle one 
of the great questions which divide the 
Protestant Episcopal Church into two dis- 
cordant and contending bodies. Let the 
position of our friend be generally ad- 
mitted, and there will be no ground for 
division as far as that most important 
question is concerned. Moreover, as we 
shall see, it is connected with various other 
discordant elements, which it will help to 
remove out of the way, and, like the voice 
of the Master to the troubled sea, bring 
peace to a storm-tossed community. 

As there are various other arguments 
which lead to the same conclusion, and un- 
doubtedly strengthen the position of our 
friend, and as the subject is now being 
sharply debated, we propose to call atten- 
tion to some of them, so as to let our ritual- 
istic opponents see, if they will look, that 
they are building on a sandy foundation 
that will in due time give way beneath their 
feet. But first we ask leave to dwell for a 
moment on one of the important facts, 
which our friend has presented, in order 
that it may be properly appreciated. 

We agree with his suggestion that the 
contention will probably be made, that what 
is said in the first part of his article does 
not prove that the word priest as used in 



180 PKIEST OR PRESBYTER 

the prayer-book signifies presbyter or 
elder. And so lie proceeds to meet this 
contention, which we think he does success- 
fully, by means of the articles of religion 
of the Church of England. These articles 
were given in two different languages, the 
Latin and the English. If they had been 
given only in the Latin there could have 
been no doubt that presbyter only was 
meant, and the idea of a sacrificing priest 
would be excluded, for in Latin there is an- 
other word to express this office, viz., the 
word sacerdos. But this word is not once 
used in the Latin version of the articles, so 
that question is settled so far as that ver- 
sion is concerned. Why, then, should there 
be any doubt on the question ! ^ ' Because, ' ' 
it is said, ^ 'in the Church of England, at the 
time the articles were composed, there were 
altars and church o'fflcials who dated back 
before the Eeformation and still held liv- 
ings, and contended that they were regular 
priests of sacerdotal function, and that 
therefore the use of the word priest, as de- 
noting a sacrificer, was allowed in the 
Church of England, and was, to say the 
least, on an equal footing with the word 
presbyter.'' But there are other facts to 
be considered which, added to the proof al- 
ready given, make the conclusion inevitable 
that the word presbyter is aloyie admissible. 



PKIEST OR PRESBYTER 181 

One of these facts is that those who framed 
the articles held the view that there were 
no sacrificing priests in the Christian 
Church, and that its ministers were only 
presbyters, similar to the officers of that 
name in the Jewish synagogue. Further, 
it is to be considered that if either of these 
versions is more authoritative than the 
other, it is the Latin one, for the reason 
that this version was designed to be sent to 
foreign countries where the Latin, was a 
general medium of communication and 
where the English language was not under- 
stood, to make known to the foreign 
churches the doctrines of the Church of 
England, and must therefore be regarded 
as especially the standard of doctrine. 

But, leaving the articles, we pass on to 
an important argument that may be drawn 
from the history of the altar in the Church 
of England. At an early period after the 
Reformation the altar was excluded from 
the English churches and a law was passed 
that communion tables alone should be al- 
lowed within the chancels. Now, as sacri- 
ficing priests are essential to altars, so al- 
tars are essential to sacrificing priests, for 
such priests cannot perform their functions 
without them. And so when altars were 
put out of the Church of England the end of 
sacerdotalism was thereby proclaimed, and 



182 PEIEST OE PKESBYTEB 

the ministry of the Church of England 
were virtually called back to the scriptural 
work of preaching the gospel and teaching 
the nations regarding the one great sacri- 
fice, once made by our great High Priest to 
atone for the sins of the whole world. 

We go on to observe that this position is 
alone consistent with Bible teaching. St. 
Paul, who established the Christian Church 
in Gentile regions and among Gentile peo- 
ples, never calls Christian ministers by any 
other name than that of presbyters or eld- 
ers, and never spoke of them as exercising 
any priestly functions. 

Now, the word presbyter is taken from 
the vocabulary of the Jewish synagogue 
and designates one of its officers. It has no 
reference whatever to the temple service 
and does not point to any officer or attend- 
ant in the temple or to any service or cere- 
mony which was performed there. The 
office of presbyter in the synagogue was to 
help conduct the worship and to teach. 
When, then, we learn that the Saviour and 
his apostles regularly attended the syna- 
gogues and took part in their services and 
afterwards used the synagogue word 
^^ presbyter'' to designate the ministry of 
the Christian Church, it is clear that the 
synagogue, not the temple, was the model 
on which the Christian Church was organ- 



PBIEST OE PKESBYTER 183 

ized, and that its ministers were presby- 
ters, which means that their office was to 
teach the people and conduct the services 
in the places of meeting. There are vari- 
ous texts of Scripture which go to prove 
this position. We take one which, because 
its bearing is indirect, is the more forcible. 
In 1 Cor. ix, 13, we read : ' ' They which min- 
ister about holy things live of the things of 
the temple, and they which wait at the altar 
are partakers of the altar. Even so hath 
the Lord ordained, that they which preach 
the gospel shall live of the gospel/' Here 
it is made plain that as sacrificing on the 
altar was the temple priest's great work, so 
the preaching the gospel was the great duty 
of the Christian minister, and this is in- 
volved in the word presbyter. 

But we shall, perhaps, be informed here 
that ministers of the church have a two-fold 
office — they are both priests and presby- 
ters. For does not St. Peter speak of a 
*^ royal priesthood '^ in the Christian 
Church! Yes; but we would have it ob- 
served that the apostle is not speaking 
here of the Christian ministry, but of the 
Christian congregation, the Christian peo- 
ple. The offerings which the Christian 
people brought were not for sacrifices to be 
made on altars for the sins of themselves 
or others. In the Christian dispensation 



184 PEIEST OE PRESBYTER 

there is but one sacrifice for sins, that is 
Christ; but one sacrificing priest to offer 
it, that is Christ; but one altar, that is 
Calvary. The offerings which the peo- 
ple brought were themselves, their alms 
and oblations, their prayers and their 
praises. These are called in the prayer- 
book ^ ^ sacrifices, ' ' not as propitiations 
for sins, but simply as offerings of 
gratitude and love. And when ministers 
offer these for the people, it is as members 
of the Church, representing members of the 
Church, not as ordained ministers. Chris- 
tian ministers are simply presbyters, noth- 
ing more; whose office it is to preach the 
gospel, to teach the people, to govern the 
churches and administer the sacraments, 
which are only outward and visible signs 
of the inward and spiritual graces which 
are given by God, and by God alone. And 
these graces are given not only at the time 
when the sacraments are administered, but 
at other times, often when the individuals 
are alone as far as human beings are con- 
cerned, and only God is present. From all 
this it is evident that Christian ministers 
are not priests of sacerdotal function, but 
are simply presbyters. 

But we must return again to the 39 arti- 
cles of religion in order to explain their 
bearing on the clergy, which will furnish 



PBIEST OE PBESBYTEE 185 

another argmneiit in favor of the position 
we are supporting. As we have already 
seen, these articles contain the doctrines of 
the Church of England, as also of the 
American Protestant Episcopal Church. 
In England all ministers at the time of 
their ordination are required to subscribe 
to these articles in token that they accept 
them as the doctrines of the Church, believe 
them, and will adhere to them and en- 
deavor to carry them out. The prayer 
book they receive as the guide to their 
public worship and devotions and offices, 
not because they regard it as containing 
the doctrines which they must hold. Hence, 
whatever may be said about the doctrinal 
significance of the church services and vari- 
ous offices and ceremonies contained in that 
book, these are not to shape their doctrinal 
positions, nor mould their doctrinal teach- 
ing. The articles form the platform on 
which they step, and take their stand when 
they sign them. Hereafter, everything 
which comes in, or is brought into the 
Church to interfere with or displace these 
doctrines they are to oppose and, if possi- 
ble, to cast out. 

The same is the case in the Protestant 
Episcopal Church in America. The clergy 
who organized this Church were all mem- 
bers and ministers of the Church of Eng- 



186 PEIEST OE PEESBYTEE 

land^ and had all signed and given their ad- 
hesion to the 39 articles, which were sub- 
sequently adopted by the Protestant Epis- 
copal Church of the United States, and 
were designed to answer the same purpose 
as in the mother church. The ministers of 
the Protestant Episcopal Church were all 
bound by the 39 articles of religion, and it 
is their duty to endeavor to carry them out. 

But here a question arises of great mo- 
ment, on the answer to which depend mo- 
mentous issues, and which, because it has 
been sometimes answered wrongly, has led 
many into false and dangerous positions. 
^'If what has been said be correct," it is 
asked, '^why are not the clergy of the Prot- 
estant Episcopal Church required to sign 
the articles, as in the Church of England?" 
The answer we make is plain and cannot be 
denied or evaded. It is because they give 
their assent and adhesion in another way, 
viz., htf their ordination vows. At the time 
of their ordination they are asked the ques- 
tion: 

^'Will you give your faithful diligence 
always so to minister the doctrine and sac- 
raments, and the discipline of Christ, as 
the Lord hath commanded and as this 
Church hath received the same, according 
to the commandments of God?" * * * 



PKIEST OR PKESBYTER 187 

And the answer is, ''I will, God being my 
helper. ' ' 

Where, we ask, are the doctrines of this 
Church found! And we answer again, ' ' In 
the 39 articles, ' ' as has been clearly shown. 

Again the candidates are asked: 

' ' Will you be ready with all faithful dili- 
gence to banish and drive away from the 
Church all erroneous and strange doc- 
trines, contrary to God's words!" * * * 

And the answer is given, ''I will, God 
being my helper. ' ' 

What, we ask, are many of the erroneous 
and strange doctrines contrary to God's 
words but those pointed out by the articles 
of religion, and condemned in them! 

The same is to be noticed in the conse- 
cration of bishops. Having already taken 
on them the vows of the presbyter which 
embrace the articles of religion, they again 
promise ''to give their endeavors to banish 
and drive away from the Church all erron- 
eous and strange doctrines contrary to 
God's word." 

Thus we see that bishops as well as pres- 
byters are bound by the articles of the 
Church, and therefore must regard the 
priest of sacerdotal function as not belong- 
ing to the Church of God, and the presbyter 
alone as its rightful minister. Is it not 
therefore the sacred duty of its faithful 



188 PEIEST OR PRESBYTER 

bishops and presbyters to seek to put ont 
of the Cliurch these strange and erroneous 
doctrines of sacrificial priests with their 
accompanying altars and sacrifices'? With 
the solemn vows of their ordination and 
consecration resting upon them, are they 
justified in remaining passive when all 
manner of erroneous and strange doctrines 
are being brought into their churches and 
diocese? Can they be satisfied to remain 
inert, and see their Church, once so beauti- 
fully arrayed in the simple robes brought 
from the sacred storehouse of gospel truth, 
changed entirely in its doctrinal attire, and 
clad in the dark and soiled raiment of Rom- 
ish errors, and ceremonies, and supersti- 
tions ? 

Wliatever answer may be given by the 
Church, clergy and bishops, we feel sure 
that there will go up from many hearts, if 
not lips, of the laity the answer which the 
angels, if not men, will hear, ^ ^ God forbid. ' ' 

WHAT SHALL WE DO ABOUT IT? 

It is a most singular fact, that in a de- 
nomination of Christians which attaches 
more importance to an apostolic ministry 
than any other Protestant body, and holds 
it up before the world as the greatest and 
most important element of Christ's Church, 
many of its dioceses should be carried on 



PEIEST OE PRESBYTER 189 

without truly apostolic bishops, as de- 
scribed in Scripture, and many of its 
churches should be ministered to by others 
than apostolic presbyters and deacons. In 
Holy Scripture we find clear and detailed 
descriptions of the orders of the ministry, 
while the powers and the duties of these 
orders are fully defined ; but in many places 
we look in vain for any such officers. 

As this statement will, we believe, be 
very startling and perhaps shocking to 
some of our readers, we deem it incumbent 
on us to present to them what we believe 
will be sufficient proof of its truth. 

We begin with a simple illustration: 
Suppose a workman to be employed by the 
owner of a house to equip it with electric 
lights ; to display to advantage the pictures 
hung on the walls of every room ; but that 
instead of doing so he furnishes and lights 
it with tallow candles. Could this so-called 
electrician claim that he was acting the 
electrician or that he had performed the 
work which he had been employed to do? 

Suppose further that on account of his 
professional title he should be employed to 
teach the lighting of houses with electric 
lights and then should teach how to make 
tallow candles, and how to dispose them in 
the house, could he be truthfully said to be 



190 PKIEST OE PKESBYTER 

a teacher of electricity? Who can answer 
in the affirmative ? 

Consider next another, and, we believe, 
a similar supposition. Suppose a presby- 
ter of the Protestant Episcopal Church to 
be consecrated bishop, and then to go forth 
to preach and teach Mohammedanism, and 
also to take the position that the Koran is 
as much an inspired book as the Bible, and 
to use its teaching rather than the teach- 
ings of the Bible. Must he not then be con- 
sidered virtually a Mohammedan, and not 
a bishop of the Protestant Episcopal 
Church! Or suppose him to teach the 
views of the Christian Scientists and to 
lead others to become Christian Scientists, 
would he not then be a Christian Scientist, 
and not a bishop of the Protestant Episco- 
pal Church? Or suppose again that he 
should teach the doctrines of the Church of 
Rome rather than those of the Protestant 
Episcopal Church, and lead men into the 
Roman Catholic Church, would he not then 
be in reality a Roman Catholic rather than 
a bishop of the Protestant Episcopal 
Church? We believe there is but one an- 
swer that can be given to this question. As 
the man who, when sent to install electric 
lights in a house, should introduce tallow 
candles instead, and should teach others to 
do the same, would be virtually a tallow 



PEIEST OE PKESBYTEB 191 

chandler and not an electrician; so a man 
consecrated to the office of bishop in the 
Protestant Episcopal Church who should 
be a teacher of doctrines and views not held 
in that Church would be in reality a min- 
ister of the sect or religious body whose 
views and doctrines he held and taught. 

We all know what is the office of the 
Romish bishop and what spiritual powers 
he is supposed to possess, and is claimed to 
possess. His Church claims that he is 
commissioned from on high to give to the 
priesthood the power to forgive to peni- 
tents the sins which they confess to him; 
that he receives power to change by the 
rite of baptism, not only infants, but adults, 
into the true and accepted children and 
subjects of God; that he is empowered to 
change the elements of the communion — 
bread and wine — into the real body and 
blood of Christ, which, given to men and 
women, takes away all sin committed by 
them, and restores the sinner to the favor 
of God; that he is endued with power, by 
the saying of masses, to bring out of purg- 
atory into paradise the souls of men and 
women consigned there for their sins, and 
to restore them to the favor of God. 

Now, it cannot be proved from Holy 
Scripture that any such power is conferred 
on bishops by apostolic succession or any 



192 PEIEST OE PRESBYTER 

other means ; and it is evident from the or- 
dinal of the Prayer Book for the consecra- 
tion of bishops, that no such claim is made 
in the Protestant Episcopal Church. When, 
then, we see men consecrated bishops in 
the Protestant Episcopal Church claiming 
some, if not all, of these powers claimed for 
Eomish bishops, which are not mentioned 
in the consecration office of their church, 
are we not driven to the conclusion, that 
they are not acting as bishops of that 
church, but of the Eoman Catholic Church, 
and that in the dioceses over which they 
preside there are no Protestant Episcopal 
bishops 1 

We have called attention to this painful 
subject, not because we have any enmity 
to those who are engaged in this most un- 
fortunate and harmful work, but in order 
that our people may become aware of the 
precipice before them to which they are 
being rapidly borne. 

That such bishops are not ^'channels of 
grace'' is evident from the teachings of 
history — so evident that ^'ihe wayfaring 
man, though a fool, need not err therein." 
With such channels of grace filling the 
Eoman Empire, streams of corruption and 
immorality and unbelief flowed through 
that great kingdom until not only all pure 



PKIEST OK PRESBYTER 193 

religion, but all morality and virtue were 
nearly swept away. 

And now that we see such ^'channels of 
grace" appearing here and there in our 
own churches, and the effort in the Protest- 
ant Episcopal Church increasing to multi- 
ply their number, shall the members of 
this Church of the Eeformation sit still and 
see the work go on, and make no effort to 
stop its direful progress? And shall we 
encourage all such by saying, ^'See how 
charitable and lovely are these members of 
the Protestant Episcopal Church, who do 
not speak a word against any one, not even 
those who are making the effort to destroy 
their Church ' ' by changing it into a Roman 
Catholic or rationalistic body! 



THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF 
DREAMS 

Gen. xxxvii, 19. Behold this dreamer 
cometh. 

Gen. xxxvii, 20. We shall see what will 
become of his dreams. 

Theke has been in all ages, great differ- 
ence of opinion among the learned and in- 
telligent, as well as among the ignorant, on 
the subject of dreams. While many have 
held that there is no significance to be at- 
tached to them; that they are no more than 
the sighing of the winds, and are indeed 
only the working of a restless brain, that 
is drifting on the current of a sea of illu- 
sion; there are others who hold, that all 
dreams have significance, and are con- 
nected with the world of reality. And that 
when properly considered and properly 
pondered, they throw great light on com- 
ing events. Indeed, many look upon them 
as the shadows which coming events cast 
before them: that they are as John the 
Baptist to the coming Saviour; or as the 

194 



THE EVIDENTIAL. VALUE OF DREAMS 195 

star which pointed out the new-born Christ 
to the magi. We take np the subject to- 
day to consider it in the light of Holy 
Scripture ; and to throw upon it, as far as 
we can, the rays which come from heaven 
through the open window of Revelation. 

Thus considered, we find that there is 
error in two directions. It appears that 
they who think that there never has been 
and is not now any significance in dreams, 
are greatly mistaken. While they are 
equally in error, who believe, that every 
dream is a revelation, and has its counter- 
part in reality. 

I. Let us consider the subject first, as 
presented outside of Holy Scripture. We 
are met at once with the fact that great 
events have flowed from dreams. We men- 
tion one striking instance, out of a large 
number. We read that some time since 
one of the Sultans of Turkey abandoned a 
beautiful palace which he had just built, on 
account of a dream, and proceeded to have 
another erected. The reckless waste of 
money which this act led to was the cause 
of an uprising of the people and the loss 
of his throne ; so that the loss of a kingdom 
was owing to a dream. In the Homeric age 
it was firmly believed that dreams came 
from Jupiter ; were intended to guide men 



196 THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DREAMS 

on their way; and should therefore be al- 
ways heeded. In Babylon and Egypt, two 
nations which, in ancient times, led in civ- 
ilization, there were men whose business 
it was to interpret dreams, and the kings 
of these countries employed the most dis- 
tinguished among them to reside in their 
courts and give the meaning of their 
dreams. In more modern times grave phil- 
osophers have written treatises on the 
meanings and objects of dreams, and have 
given rules for their interpretation. Even 
so great a man as Lord Bacon, than whom 
the world has never produced a greater 
philosopher, or greater thinker, confessed 
his belief in the significance of dreams, as 
revelations of things to come. 

Philosophers and mental scientists of 
our day have given great attention to the 
subject, and many have come to the con- 
clusion, that dreams play an important 
part in the economy of mind. Through 
dreams, they tell us, the fancy and imag- 
ination are exercised; and so, that part of 
the mind which is not used by many in 
ordinary life and business is thus kept in 
its proper condition, and the proper bal- 
ance of the faculties which is necessary to 
a sound condition of mind is thus pre- 
served. But aside from this physiological 
view, there can be no doubt that dreams 



THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DKEAMS 197 

often decide the actions of men. Many a 
one who has been long standing on the 
brink of the precipice of decision is pushed 
over by the hand of a dream, and rushes on 
to actions, to which nothing in the world of 
reality could urge him. It is not the In- 
dians alone who decide the great questions 
of the day by the imaginings of the night. 
No one who has conversed much with the 
masses of the people can fail to know that 
dreams, at the present day, among civilized 
peoples (so called) have a large part in 
deciding the questions of practical life. 
Men and women enter upon business en- 
gagements; take journeys; contract mar- 
riages ; make friends ; and do other things 
owing to dreams. So that whatever the 
true value of dreams, they have much to 
do with events which are constantly hap- 
pening around us. 

II. These facts give great interest to 
dreams ; and we turn now to the considera- 
tion of them as presented in Holy Scrip- 
ture, which will throw some light on the 
subject in general. 

( 1 ) If we receive the statements given in 
the Bible, we cannot doubt that God has 
sometimes communicated with men through 
dreams, and has in this way given them 
revelations and directions. This appears 



198 THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DKEAMS 

clearly in the Old Testament as well as in 
the New. The patriarchs, the prophets, 
and the apostles all received directions in 
dreams, and were all sometimes led by this 
means in their various paths of dnty. 

(2) But now I wish you to observe that it 
is not taught in the Bible that dreams are 
as a general rule to be regarded as divine 
directions, and that men and women are to 
be guided and controlled by them. On the 
contrary, men are warned not to generally 
so regard them. The children of Israel 
were most emphatically taught that dreams 
were not always divine directions. They 
were not to go to the heathen interpreters 
of dreams to learn what the dreams meant : 
nor to consult diviners and soothsayers 
with regard to them. When God had in- 
spired prophets or teachers on earth, they 
might go to them. But otherwise they must 
not be led by those who proclaimed them- 
selves interpreters of dreams, nor suppose 
that God spoke to them in this way, with- 
out some divine interposition accompany- 
ing the dream. The prophet Jeremiah de- 
nounced those who, coming to direct the 
people, had nothing to appeal to but 
dreams, and called them ^^ lying prophets/' 

In the New Testament it is clearly taught 
that credentials are needed in addition to 
the dreams. And while the apostles were 



THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DREAMS 199 

sometimes directed by visions in tlie night, 
they received them because God had 
spoken and made himself known in other 
ways. There was, as it were, a seal, or 
signature given to the dream which made 
it of avail, and reliable. And so if we re- 
ceive the teachings of Scripture, it is evi- 
dent that no man should be influenced by a 
dream alone. In order that the dream 
should be received and acted on, it should, 
like an ambassador from a foreign country, 
have its credentials. If you will examine 
Holy Scripture you will see that these cre- 
dentials are necessary, and in some cases 
you will see what they were. 

Wlien two dreams of different men cor- 
responded and fitted into each other, the 
one throwing light on the other, or inter- 
preting the other, this would be an indica- 
tion of a divine origin. Such was the case 
with the dreams of King Nebuchadnezzar 
and the prophet Daniel. The king had a 
dream ; and then Daniel had a dream, which 
was a repetition of the king's dream, ac- 
companied by an interpretation of it. And 
when Daniel was sent for to interpret it, 
when he heard it he knew at once that it 
was the same with his own, and that the 
meaning and object had been communicated 
to him. The same elements appear in the 
case of the apostle St. Peter. When he 



200 THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DREAMS 

was upon the housetop at Joppa he had, 
in a dream, a vision of a sheet descending 
from heaven with unclean animals upon it; 
and being told to ' ' kill and eat them, ' ' re- 
plied, that he had never eaten anything 
common or unclean. But he was com- 
manded to do so ; and while he pondered as 
to what was meant he was called down to 
meet the messengers from Cornelius the 
Centurion, a Gentile, who came to ask that 
he would visit their master and instruct 
him. He then received a divine intimation 
that he should go with them. This intima- 
tion made it plain to him that the vision 
was designed to teach him the lesson that 
he, a Jew, must hereafter be willing to 
go among, and associate tvith the Gentiles. 

In other cases of dreams which were di- 
vine communications, there were distinct 
intimations given to shoiv that they were 
designed for the guidance and direction of 
those to whom they were sent. It is there- 
fore plainly the teaching of Holy Scripture 
that dreams are to be considered as divine 
directions, and are to be followed only 
when they have those accompaniments 
which indicate the object. And that when 
not so accredited, they shoidd not he fol- 
loived. 

I have entered thus largely into the sub- 
ject, and made these suggestions because 



THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DREAMS 201 

dreams are common to us all. We all have 
visions upon our beds, when our souls are 
shut out from the world, and are often 
startled and puzzled by them and are 
tempted to ask, what do they mean? And 
also because many look upon every vivid 
dream as a divine communication intended 
to give counsel, and often are led to wrong 
courses of action. 

III. But we turn now to consider more 
particularly the dreams to which our text 
calls attention: the dreams of Joseph the 
son of Jacob. They form a part, and an 
important part, of the history of the chil- 
dren of Israel as well as of the surround- 
ing nations. They bring before us the 
spiritual agencies and beings of the unseen 
world, revealing scenes stranger than the 
fictions of the Arabian Nights. You have 
all probably observed that the great events 
of Joseph's history were foreshadowed in 
dreams, and were determined by them. 
The dreams were not only the "John the 
Baptist," that went before, but the apos- 
tolic workmen, so to speak, that came after 
and carried them out. Moreover, as the 
fate of the other sons of Jacob depended 
on Joseph, the dreams were the great fac- 
tors in their history. The destiny of Egypt 
was decided by them, and as on Egypt hung 



202 THE EVIDENTIAL. VALUE OF DEEAMS 

the fate of all the nations which touched her 
borders, it appears that dreams have been 
great elements in the history of the nations. 
Let US for a moment consider some of these 
dreams. When a mere boy, Joseph 
dreamed that his brothers became subject 
to him. Subsequently he dreamed that his 
father and mother also bowed before him. 
On account of these dreams his brethren 
became exasperated. ^' Shall we indeed,'^ 
said they, ^'be subject to Joseph?'' This 
led them to plot against him ; and when the 
opportunity occurred, to sell him to the 
Midianites. When they had done this they 
said, ^^Now we will see what will become 
of his dreams/' Now observe that his sale 
to the Midianites, which was owing to his 
dreams, was the great step that led to his 
going to Egypt, and his subsequent eleva- 
tion, without which the brothers would not 
have bowed before him. 

When he reached Egypt we behold 
dreams coming in again, as an element of 
his life, and of his advancement. Having 
been throvm into prison, owing to the ma- 
chinations of a wicked woman, he there be- 
comes the interpreter of the dreams of the 
baker and butcher of Pharaoh, his fellow- 
prisoners; and through these interpreta- 
tions, which God enabled him to make, he is 
taken out of prison and brought before 



THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DREAMS 203 

Pharaoh, to interpret the dreams of that 
king". And when he is again enabled to 
interpret them, the dreams cause his eleva- 
tion to the chief place in Egypt; and the 
saving of that land from the ravages of a 
dreadful famine. By this means his father 
and mother and brethren are brought be- 
fore him, to make obeisance to him and ac- 
knowledge his rule ; and they are led to see 
^ ' what becomes of his dreams. " It is to be 
noted further that this coming to Egypt of 
Jacob and his sons united the interests and 
life of the children of Israel with those of 
the Egyptians, and to subsequent events of 
their history. Without this coming to 
Egypt there would not have been the Ex- 
odus ; there would not have been the mira- 
cles wrought on Pharaoh ; there would not 
have been the leadership of Moses; there 
would not have been the journey through 
the wilderness and the marvels that marked 
that wonderful journey; nor would there 
have been those books of the Old Testa- 
ment, which are the legacy of God to a per- 
ishing tvorld. 

Notice next that Joseph was in this, as in 
other respects, the type of Christ. As the 
events of Joseph's life were decided by 
dreams, so were those of the Lord and 
Saviour. The coming of Christ was an- 
nounced in visions and dreams. When an 



204 THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DKEAMS 

infant, Joseph was directed in a dream to 
flee with Him into Egypt ; and He thns es- 
caped the sword of Herod, the King of 
Judea. He was called back from Egypt by 
a dream. And thus dreams were impor- 
tant elements in the life and work of Him 
on whom we believe the destiny, not only of 
Israel and Egypt, but of the world, de- 
pends. 

I might call attention to many other im- 
portant events recorded in the Bible, in 
which dreams were essential elements ; but 
enough has been said to show that they 
have been one of the great instrumentali- 
ties which God has used in His government 
of men and in His dealings with the na- 
tions. 

IV. Let me now go on to observe that 
this element of the Bible history which 
makes dreams a factor, distinguishes it in 
history from all other histories, and all 
other religious systems; and is one out of 
many proofs of its divine origin. The his- 
tory of the children of Israel is so inter- 
woven with those of the Syrians, the Egyp- 
tians, the Grecians, the Romans, and other 
contiguous nations, that it must be acknowl- 
edged to be true, or all other history be 
abandoned. The Bible accounts are sup- 
ported and proved by monuments, tombs. 



THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DREAMS 205 

buried cities, histories and biographies in- 
numerable. Now it is plain that some of 
the events recorded in the Bible, and cor- 
roborated by these profane authorities , 
were owing to dreams, and that they had 
been predicted long before by the prophets. 
This being true, it follows that He who 
caused the events, and gave the prophecies, 
caused the dreams. And if so. He must 
preside over the minds of men. The world 
therefore has been and is governed not 
only by ivhat goes on without man, but by 
what goes on in his mind. There must 
therefore be a God, and He must be the 
ruler of the world, and that God has given 
us the Bible. All men are therefore bound 
to receive and obey it. 

V. Further, we have here an argument 
to show that there is a soul as well as a 
body. 

When deep sleep has fallen on man, and 
his material nature lies unconscious and 
dead, then there is a mysterious element 
which is at work, making plans for action, 
and deciding the course of the future. This 
cannot be mere matter; it cannot be the 
body, for that is locked in slumber. It must 
be a living and acting spirit. And so we 
have reason to believe, from the fact of 
dreams, from this activity which goes on 



206 THE EVIDENTI.\L VALUE OF DREAMS 

when the body is at rest, that there must 
be ill man a spirit which is distinct from 
the body, and as it lives and acts when the 
body is nnconscions and dead in sleep, why 
should it not continue to do so when the 
body is imconscious in death'? In its ac- 
tion in sleep it is, in fact, separated from 
the body; and so we believe, when it shall 
entirely separate from the body in death, 
it will rise from it and be in full action in 
another world ! And so we have reason to 
helieve in the teaching, which we find in 
the Bible, of the future life. We are all to 

^^Rise from transitoiy things, 
To heaven our destined place." 

VI. But let us turn now to the brothers of 
Joseph, to consider them for a moment. 
Exasperated at his dreams, they determine 
they will settle the question of his reigning 
over them bv selling him into slaverv, and 
thus defeat his dreams. And when ihey 
have done this and have sold him to the Mi- 
dianites, they say, *^Let us see now what 
will become of his dreams.'^ Joseph dis- 
appears. The tomb of oblivion seems to 
have swallowed him up, and the father who 
lias long mourned the beloved son has dried 
the tears of his grief. But after long vears 
famine comes, and they have no recourse 



THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DKEAMS 207 

left but to turn their feet towards Egypt, 
the land of corn and wine. They arise and 
visit it. And there, in the highest place of 
power, next to Pharaoh, sits a grand prince 
before whom they make obeisance. Father 
and mother and sons all bow before him. 
It is Joseph, the son and brother, and now 
in that far-off land they discover what has 
become of his dreams. They are the de- 
crees of God — which cannot be resisted. 

There are, my friends, men and women 
who speak of the Bible, and look on the 
Bible, as a book of wild rhapsodies, and 
wilder dreams; and they sometimes speak 
of it, as Jacob's sons spoke of the dreams 
of Joseph. But let them know that the 
dreams which it contains, as we have 
shown, are proofs of its truth, and that they 
lead towards the fulfillment of its teach- 
ings. These dreams show that God is the 
God of the soul as well as of the body, and 
many of the pointings of that book are to 
be yet fulfilled. He who dealt with the sons 
of Jacob deals with all of us. And we must 
all appear before Him of whom Joseph is 
the type. As the sons of Jacob could not 
be saved without Joseph, so can we not be 
saved without the Lord Jesus Christ. As 
the brothers of Joseph made their peace 
with him ; as they bowed before him and ac- 
knowledged him, so may you come before 



208 THE EVIDENTIAL VALUE OF DKEAMS 

our Joseph and acknowledge him. He is 
ready to receive and bless ns all. He will 
not cast out any that come to him. He has 
passed through the slavery of the wicked 
reign of Herod and Pilate for our sakes: 
He has passed through the dreadful prison, 
of which the cross on Calvary was the gate, 
that He might open it for us : and having 
risen to the throne of a kingdom higher 
than that of Egypt, He waits to receive 
all who will become His brethren, and will 
bow before Him on earth. 

^'When I rise to worlds unknown 
And behold thee on thy throne! 
Eock of ages cleft for me. 
Let me hide myself in Thee/[ 



THE CHRISTIAN'S INHERITANCE 

I Cor. iii, 21: All things are yours; 
ivhether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the 
ivorld or life or death or things present or 
things to come, all are yours, and ye are 
Christ's and Christ's is God's. 

I BRING before you to-day a Christian 
teaching which is one of those things which 
the people of the world do not know, which 
neither philosophy nor science could dis- 
cover, and which many Christian people 
have not apprehended in ages past, and 
many of our day have not apprehended, 
but which is one of the great truths of Rev- 
elation, and which when properly appre- 
hended leads to many great results. It 
leads necessarily to activity and earnest- 
ness on account of the relationship which 
it unveils. It tends to draw Christians to- 
gether. It helps to break down all walls 
of separation and to unify the kingdom of 
Christ throughout the world. I allude to 
the ownership, not only of this world, but 
also of the great universe which stretches 
around it, and of all the things innumer- 

309 



210 THE CHEISTIAN^S INHEKITANCE 

able which are connected with it. Who 
owns them all! 

St. Paul informs his Corinthian disciples 
that they were too narrow in their views 
on this subject. He had observed tliat they 
were divided into parties, and that one 
party claimed one teacher as theirs, and an- 
other party another as theirs. And one set of 
men believed one set of doctrines as theirs, 
while another set held otlier doctrines: and 
that different parties claimed different in- 
terests; some rejecting what others fa- 
vored. And it was as if the universe were 
divided up into little farms, and that each 
one was concerned only with his o^vn al- 
lotted portion. The apostle informs them 
that they erred in holding* such views ; for 
among a Christian people there is a gen- 
eral proprietorship in all tilings. Chris- 
tians, he says, have an interest in the whole 
tmiverse. They are interested, not alone in 
this or that particular Christian teacher, 
but in all Christian teachers; not alone in 
this or tliat particular church, but in all 
Christian churches; not alone in this or 
that particular doctrine, but in all Chris- 
tian doctrines. Nor are they interested 
alone in things that pertain to religion, but 
are concerned in, and have a part in. every- 
thing around them, and beneath them, and 
above them. **A11 things,'' says St. Paul, 



THE CHKISTIAN^S INHERITANCE 211 

*^are yours. Whether Paul, or Apollos, or 
Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or 
things present, or things to come, all are 
yours.'' 

I* 

I. Having thus looked into the mean- 
ing of this utterance, let us proceed to con- 
sider some of the questions which it brings 
before us. ^'How,'' it will be asked, *^can 
such a state of things exist ? And how can 
it be proved to be trueT ' We doubt not that 
these questions will be asked by many who 
have never before had their attention called 
to this great subject. 

In making answer I observe, first, that 
this state of things arises necessarily from 
man's relationship to God. Of the many 
truths revealed in the Bible, one of the 
greatest is this : that human beings are the 
children of God. The meaning of this ex- 
pression is contained in the human rela- 
tionship of parents and children. There is 
involved in this relationship their interest 
in the possessions of their parents. And we 
may say that the interest extends to all 
their property. As soon as children learn 
to appreciate what property is, they speak 
of the parents' property as '*ours." And 
until separated from the parents they have 
an interest in all their property. They 
therefore take pride in what belongs to the 



212 THE CHEISTIAN^S INHEEITANCE 

parents. If any one comes to take any part 
of it away they feel that they themselves 
are being robbed. They will therefore go 
into peril to defend it, and will often volun- 
tarily endure great fatigue to take care of 
and improve it. Now, in being told that 
Christians are the children of God, these 
ideas are conveyed. And it must have been 
designed by the Apostle that the title re- 
ferred to should be received as teaching, 
and explaining the position which men oc- 
cupy in this great universe. 

II. But the same idea is involved in an- 
other relationship which we are told men 
hold to God. In the Bible, God is repre- 
sented as being the ^^King and Euler'^ of 
the human race. In this relationship is in- 
volved an interest in His kingdom^ wher- 
ever it extends. We know that in all coun- 
tries all the subjects are interested in the 
whole kingdom to which they belong. When 
the government is in danger it is not the 
king alone who is concerned; all are con- 
cerned. And all are called on to show their 
interest. While a portion must assemble 
together to peril their lives in defence of 
their country, all the others must assist in 
supporting and sustaining these defenders. 
And so all must come to the aid of the king 
to protect his country, which is theirs also. 



THE CHKISTIAN^S INHEKITANCE 2l3 

In like manner Christians are called on to 
engage in warfare against the enemies of 
God's kingdom. They must "come to the 
aid of the Lord against the mighty," and 
must help to defend His kingdom against 
attacks of whatever kind — attacks upon 
His people, or against His teachings, or 
against His worship and commandments. 
And so we see that the great idea presented 
by the Apostle is supported by the relation- 
ship of subjects. 

III. The same idea is contained in the 
visits of angels to the earth. We learn from 
the Bible that they have from time to time 
come to the earth from their distant homes 
on missions of mercy to members of the 
human family. We are also informed that 
they act as guardians to God's children, 
and that the little ones have their angelic 
representatives in heaven. Men are thus 
taught that the intelligent beings of the 
universe are connected together, and that 
human beings may speak of the inhabitants 
of other worlds as ''ours'' — that is, as 
those who are interested in them and will 
help them. 

IV. With these arguments from the 
Bible, we might consider the position of St. 
Paul put forth in the text as established be- 
yond peradventure. But as Napoleon the 



214 THE CHKISTIAN^S INHEKITANCE 

Great said of many men of his day, which 
is true of many of ours, ^ ' that they will be- 
lieve everything but the Bible," it may be 
well to call attention to some utterances of 
science, which have no uncertain sound. It 
is a statement which none can deny that 
the sun, with his moons and planets, and 
all the starry worlds, are necessary to the 
existence of man, and therefore all of 
them, as much as the soil on which he 
treads, may be called his possession. For 
as the heat and light which come from the 
sun are essential to man's existence, so are 
the influences of the moon, which controls 
the tides of the sea, and the numerous 
movements of the air which he breathes. 
And so also are the influences of the dis- 
tant stars, whose gravity helps to regulate 
the motions of the solar and stellar sys- 
tems, and without which there would be ^^a 
crush of matter and a wreck of worlds." 
From these facts, I say, it must follow that 
the Apostle's words with reference to ma- 
terial creations are true. And as all the 
living intelligences must be concerned in 
the material universe, all are bound to- 
gether by the material universe, which 
leads to the position of the Apostle, that 
they also form a part of man's possessions. 
So that it may be said of the members of 
the human race, ^^ All things are yours.' 



79 



THE cheistian's inheeitance 215 

V. Before proceeding to bring before 
you some of the lessons involved in the 
great truths presented, let me dwell a mo- 
ment on several points in the announce- 
ment of St. Paul, which may seem strange, 
and indeed almost incredible, on account of 
the erroneous ideas connected with them, 
which need to be removed. 

The Apostle speaks of death as one 
of the Christian's possessions, and ranks it 
with many recognized blessings. Some re- 
gard this as great an error as if a shepherd 
should speak of a wolf, which had gotten 
into his fold, as one of his sheep. ''Is not 
death,'' it is asked, "an evil, and the great- 
est of all evils ? And is it not a destroyer, 
and not a possession?" We reply, it is if 
considered simply with reference to the 
body, with the idea that there is no soul. 
But if the soul be taken into account, then 
the case is different. The body is only the 
covering of the soul. In the Scripture it is 
sometimes called ' ' a tabernacle. " It is the 
soul, the immortal spirit, which is the man. 
Now, in this world the dress of the soul, 
like the garments of the body, becomes 
worn out and tattered. The tabernacle be- 
comes decayed and weak, and the question 
comes up, how can it be gotten rid of and 
changed? The answer is, ''Death is a mes- 
senger sent to solve the problem." It 



216 THE CHKISTIAN's INHEEITAITCE 

comes to take off the tattered robe and tear 
down the broken and decayed tabernacle 
and set the tenant free. The spirit, which 
is the real man, can then ' ' rise from transi- 
tory things to heaven, his destined place.'' 
Further, the hand of death takes off the 
bandage which covers the spirit 's eyes and 
reveals new fields of God's kingdom, and 
new beings who inhabit them, and all 
things become new. In this view death be- 
comes a messenger of good and not of evil, 
of blessing and not of cursing, and may be 
called one of "the Christian's posses- 
sions." 

We might pass by another blessing 
enumerated by St. Paul, because it is rec- 
ognized by all men, worldlings as well as 
Christians, as the greatest of blessings. 
And it would seem, therefore, to need no 
explanation or comment, viz., life. But we 
take it up because we regard it as the most 
misunderstood and the most misused of all 
human blessings. It is like the light which 
God has given us, which we often shut out 
of our houses and churches^ and illumine 
them with our own poor lamps and can- 
dles. Or like the day which we turn into 
night, to sleep in, and the night which we 
turn into day to work in, or amuse our- 
selves in. Let m.e say to you, in all earnest- 
ness, that life without Christ, as our Sa- 



THE CHBISTIAN's INHERITANCE 217 

viour and our guide and teacher, is not 
worthy of the name. It is a world without 
a sun. Without Him it is only a prepara- 
tion for death. It is only a bright and 
flaming road to the world of darkness and 
of ruin. ' ' I am going, ' ' said a young man, 
*'to bring to my home yonder heiress, who 
will turn it into a paradise with golden 
streets, and gates of pearls, and with foun- 
tains of perfumes. And there will be feasts 
in the daytimes and festivals in the night 
seasons, and beautiful women and gay men 
will be there, and sweet music will make 
the air tremulous with melody, and the 
golden hours will fly by on pleasure's 
wings for years to come." The heiress 
came with her gold and her silver and her 
jewels, and the music came, and the gay 
crowd came, and all was as merry and gay 
as the picture which had been drawn by the 
young man. But Christ was not there, and 
the home was soon changed, and filled with 
harsh sorrows, and heart-burnings, and the 
family circle was broken. And instead of 
love was hatred ; and instead of peace, do- 
mestic war — and it ended in a gilded hell. 
Every day we read of the lives of the 
wealthy and worldly that are full of sor- 
rows and tears and strifes and evils. And 
so we see that Christ and his religion are 
needed that we may get the benefits of 



218 THE CHKISTIAN^S INHEEITAl^CE 

which St. Paul is speaking when he says, 
referring to Christian men and women, 
**A11 things are yours." 

VI. Having thus considered some of the 
great things which are recognized as be- 
longing to the life and existence of human 
beings when renewed in Christ, let us pro- 
ceed to consider some of the truths and les- 
sons which flow from the announcement of 
the text. To become acquainted with this 
world in all its array of strata upon strata, 
and race upon race of animals ; and depart- 
ment upon department of the vegetable 
kingdom, and of the mineral kingdom, and 
of the insect tribes, would of itself require 
uncountable years. Then to read all the 
leaves of the world's history and master all 
the details of its various kingdoms would 
require added years. What a vast time, 
then, would it require to become acquainted 
with all the histories and all the sciences 
and all the products of all the worlds! This 
would seem to require an eternity in itself. 
But when we remember that creation is 
ever going on, and that new worlds are con- 
stantly being created, we see that there is 
no end to the employment thus set before 
the human race. And when we are in- 
formed that all these things are given to 
the sons and daughters of men, the gift of 



THE christian's INHERITANCE 219 

them involves the lime and opportunity to 
see them and examine them; and so the 
words of the Apostle contained in the text 
is an announcement of the Christian man^s 
immortality. While that immortality has 
been proclaimed at other times and on 
many occasions, it is here taught in an indi- 
rect but most striking and forcible and con- 
vincing manner. We are — yes, we are im- 
mortal ! And the great universe stretching 
around us proclaims it. 

But these same facts teach that there 
is to be constant development of all the 
powers and capacities of the regenerated 
portion of the human race. We know that 
in this world the study of the various crea- 
tions which surround human beings im- 
proves and strengthens both mind and 
body. A poor boy whose early years were 
passed on a tailor's bench, and who was 
utterly ignorant and illiterate, when he 
reached manhood's years was taught to 
read by his wife. He soon became a great 
student, developed into a leading citizen of 
the country, and at last became President 
of the United States. In like manner have 
many of our poor young men developed by 
their study of the objects around them, and 
have received, as it were, wings, with which 
they have mounted upward and onward, 
until they have reached the highest places. 



220 THE christian's inheritance 

What progress, then, can be expected when 
the doors of the great universe shall be 
opened, and men and women shall enter 
and drink at the fountains of learning, and 
partake of her feasts without let and with- 
out hindrance! How, then, shall we all 
grow and improve and develop in that 
great and glorious universe which is ours ! 

But the developments of which we 
have spoken will lead further to compan- 
ionship and co-operation of angels and in- 
telligences of various grades in the future 
world. Angels have already, as we are 
taught, co-operated with men to carry out 
the plans of God on earth. But they have 
done this only to a slight degree in times 
past, because barriers of various kinds 
have kept them apart. To how great a de- 
gree will it be carried when all these bar- 
riers shall be broken down and be swept 
away! The author of the Pilgrim's Prog- 
ress saw in vision the pilgrims as they 
came across the river. The angels met 
them on the other side, and they joined 
company and walked together to the gates 
of the celestial city, and together they en- 
tered, to live together in the presence of 
their Lord and Saviour. 

There, we are taught, they are to com- 
mune together, and learn lessons from the 
lips of that Teacher whose words have al- 



THE christian's INHERITANCE 221 

ready been our guides into the way of life, 
and so will be fulfilled the words of the 
Apostle in our text, ^'Ye are Christ's, and 
Christ's is God's." And so all things 
shall be yours. 

Let me, in conclusion, call your attention 
to one of that great army of great men 
whose lives adorn the pages of English 
history, and who accomplished one great 
deed that speaks trumpet-tongued to us 
all. ^ 

His ancestors, as Macaulay tells us, were 
rich and noble men, and owned one of the 
most beautiful estates in England. But be- 
fore his birth they had squandered all, and 
he was born in poverty. When but seven 
years of age, as he lay on the banks of a 
rivulet which flows through the old domain 
of his ancestors, there rose in his mind the 
scheme to recover the estate which had 
been lost. He would be again the ^^Lord 
of the Manor." This purpose formed in 
his early youth was never abandoned, but 
grew stronger as his intellect expanded and 
as his fortune rose. He went to India, at 
that time the Eldorado of Asia. He got an 
appointment in the East India Company, 
and from a poor boy rose to the position of 
Governor of India, and was one of the 
wealthy men of the great East India Com- 
pany. As soon as he could leave the land 



222 THE cheistian's inheritance 

of his wonderful career lie returned to the 
land of his birth, and redeemed back the 
inheritance of his fathers, and was known 
again as one of the noblemen of England. 
It is thus many a youth reduced to poverty 
has risen through his own determination 
and effort to the possession of his lost in- 
heritance. 

Need I say to you that we all have an 
inheritance incorruptible and undefiled 
which has been lost, but can be won again? 
It is that which Christ came to put within 
our reach. Are there any here who have 
not won it back? Who are yet wanderers 
from the Father's home and the Father's 
love? Then let them arise and come to 
that Father and say to Him, *^ Father, I 
have sinned against heaven and before 
Thee, and am no more worthy to be called 
thy son," pleading the name of the Lord 
and Saviour. That Father will hear and 
receive them, and then it may be said of 
them, ^'All things are yours. Whether 
Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, 
or life, or death, or things present, or 
things to come, all are yours, and ye are 
Christ's, and Christ is God's." 



FEB 15 1907 



Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process 
Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: March 2006 

PreservationTechnoIogies 

A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 

1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive 
Cranberry Townsfiip. PA 16066 
(724) 779-2 in 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 





017 520 839 2 



M Hun' ' 'nnilH 

ilill ililiil 



